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10-9-2024
Big Picture Report: October 2024
Bernadette Wiltz-Lang, SUSTA
Growing Demand for U.S. Value Added Food Products
Paris has a reputation for being beautiful in the Springtime, but if you are a small to medium sized company looking to expand your international marketing reach, there’s really no better time to be there than October. Every two years, Paris hosts one of the largest and most acclaimed food and beverage tradeshows in the world, SIAL Paris.
This year’s show is just two weeks away, and SUSTA’s pavilion will have 18 Southern companies exhibiting to an expected 265,000 trade visitors from 200 countries. That’s why a number of our member State Commissioners and Secretaries of Agriculture will be in attendance as well, to see first-hand the demand for unique and quality products from the Southern U.S.
As one SUSTA company commented after the last SIAL in 2022, “this exhibition helps us broaden our horizons in terms of business ventures and helps us meet and build new relationships.” That show generated more than 720 new buyer connections and netted more than $28 million in sales for SUSTA companies. Moreover, export sales were made to a dozen countries across Europe, and to each region that SUSTA’s marketing activities target: Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East, North America, and the Pacific.
The SIAL Show is indeed a premier rendez-vous for the global agri-food industry, and thus one of SUSTA’s anchor events. Alternating with SIAL every other year is the ANUGA exhibition in Cologne, Germany, another anchor event, as are other leading exhibitions in Europe, such as the Seafood Expo Global which will be held in Barcelona in May, the IPM Essen exhibition for horticulture taking place in January, and Fruit Logistica for fresh produce scheduled to February.
While the 2024 program year is drawing to a close, it’s time to start planning your 2025 activities. As you build your export marketing strategy for next year, keep in mind the truly world-wide reach these events have. These European events can be a foundational part of your global strategy.
Of course, the first step is to re-certify your MySUSTA account. Then take advantage of SUSTA’s resources, from USDA’s Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) reports providing market research, virtual consultations with our in-country team of experts, to exporter education webinars. You can access and schedule these through your MySUSTA account. Finally, review the schedule of events for next year, from trade shows, to outbound missions, to inbound missions, and check the registration deadlines. There are a number of marquee events early in the year.
There is also demand for U.S. products like yours. Looking at official trade data for the first 11 months of the 2024 fiscal year (October through August) world-wide exports of sauces and condiments are up 5.9 percent, confectionery products are up 4.5 percent, bakery products are up 3.8 percent, non-alcoholic beverages are up 2.4 percent, beer is up 8.6 percent, and fresh fruit is up 16 percent. SUSTA has marketing opportunities for all these products – and more – lined up.You don’t want to miss out on your opportunity to strike while the iron is hot.
I’m excited and looking forward to next year and hope that you are too!
