Food exporters eye Macau

MANILA, Philippines - Local food exporters are looking at selling Philippine food products to Macau, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) reported yesterday.

The agency said Macau presents several advantages for Philippine food products like proximity and the growing number of Filipinos who work in the tourism related industry of Macau. Macau is positioning itself as one of the main convention and exhibition, and gaming center in the South China Sea . 

The recently held Outbound Business Mission (OBM) gave the participants the opportunity to meet with 14 companies from oriental and mainstream supermarkets. The pre-arranged business meetings were coordinated by the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Guangdong, China.

The one-on-one business meetings resulted in serious interest in sales of calamansi juice/concentrates and other ethnic food products. Among the notable companies that the participants met were: Walmart, Chinoy Supermarket, Nam Wan Wu Entertainments and Catering Services, and Northward Industry Macau, Ltd.

Five Philippine companies also displayed their products in the Macau International Fair (MIF). There were two booths that were provided by Investment Promotion Institute of Macau (IPIM).

Philippine products that were displayed included dried fruits, banana chips, calamansi juice/concentrates, snack food, fruit preserves, processed milkfish, processed/dried cuttlefish, and anchovies, fruit wine and lambanog. The calamansi juice and concentrates, dried mango, banana chips, fish crackers, and hopia were very popular among buyers and visitors of the Philippine booth.

For the first time in the MIF, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia , Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia participated collectively as the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) under the initiative of the ASEAN International Chamber of Commerce. Visitors to the ASEAN Pavilion had the opportunity to learn about the economic and commercial development, business opportunities, and tourist destinations in the said ASEAN-member countries.