Peru's wide range of products, from cacao to quinoa, mangoes to avocados, is increasingly gaining the attention of international markets with more buyers and importers visiting the South American country to better understand its offering and logistics.

With the aim of establishing greater trade relations between Peruvian exporters and European businesses, a buyer mission from the old continent recently touched down in Peru, taking part at the trade fair Expoalimentaria on August 27-29 with pre-arranged meetings, while also going on a farm tour in the country's north.

The mission was organized by Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE), run by the Swiss Import Promotion Programme (SIPPO) with support from the Chamber of Swiss Commerce in Peru, PromPerú and Germany’s Import Promotion Desk (IPD).

These missions started to take place two years ago, and on the recent occassion began on August 26 with an excursion to DP World Callao, a container terminal operator located in the Port of Callao near Lima. As the most modern container port installation of its kind in the country, the operation offers shipping and cargo services. In 2012 it reached a record of 1.35 million TEUs (twenty foot equivalent units).

The delegation then visited airfreight terminal facilities owned by Frío Aéreo at the Jorge Chávez International Airport, which accounts for 90% of Peru's perishable exports with asparagus, flowers, mangoes, figs, lettuces and strawberries highlighted as some of the key products. The company offers integrated services including refrigeration, palletizing and quality control.

One of the participants in the tour was Thomas Grundhöfer of Frankfurt-based Grundhöfer GmbH, which has been trading fresh fruits and vegetables for 30 years in Germany.

"We also trade oranges in Spain, grapes in Greece and Italy, and bananas in different parts of the world. Normally we don't specialize in products on the other side of the ocean but it's something we want to start doing," he said.

The buyer mission was Thomas' first visit to Peru, and he told www.freshfruitportal.com he was interested in buying products such as mangoes via airfreight and ginger.

Zimpelmann Select-Fruit GmbH & Co. Kg director general Jürgen Hubounig also had the opportunity to join the SIPPO program, representing his Dackenheim-based company that imported exotic fruits and vegetables via airfreight to sell to supermarkets and wholesalers in Germany and Austria.

The executive came to Peru in search of trustworthy suppliers.

"We already have suppliers but in the past they haven't gone so well, so that's why we were interested, more than anything to know them directly and find someone new that is more consistent in the business," he said.

"We are already working on one and we have a meeting with them. I believe this is one of the suppliers that I will have in the future, because we spoke about several things and he will also visit me in Germany in a few weeks to see what steps we can take for the future."

From the field to international markets

Over two days, participants in the mission were able to visit productive fields in northern Peru, seeing operations in crops such as mangoes, grapes, bananas and passionfruit; all organic, in small, medium and large-sized farms.

Readers can click here for more detail about the farm visit.

"There is a market for them [Peruvian fruit]. Perhaps not for passionfruit because it's not very common in Germany, but there is a market for bananas, mangoes and avocados. Perhaps also for physalis, but a little bit," Grundhöfer said.

"The biggest market in Germany is for bananas."

Apart from getting to know production in northern Peru, Hubounig was very interested in documenting the visit as a way of showing clients he was working directly with suppliers.

"After this trip I will put together a company presentation. That's why I'm very interested in combining different things to make what I'm doing clear to my clients, because you just see our webpage and I'd like to show them we are working directly with providers; not just by phone or e-email, but we're going to the fields, we concern ourselves with them.

South America is not unfamiliar for Hubounig however as he works with several Chilean companies, but he believes Peru is very different to its southern neighbor.

"In the long-term it [Peru] could be on the right path," he said.

"Some 75% of the companies I saw [at the fair] were not anywhere near what we need, but the biggest ones that are trying to work with companies like mine and with European importers, they are the professionals we are looking for and I believe there are many small companies that have to learn what is necessary for them."

Minka Market

To get an idea of the diversity of fruits and vegetables available in Peru, the group also visited the Minka Market in Lima's north, which supplies both foodservice companies and household consumers.

Click here for photos from the market.

Welcomed by large halls and a vast array of colors and smells, the group was able to pass through its 60 locales where a variety of products can be seen from the country's coastal, sierra and jungle regions.

Tubers, vegetables, green beans, lemons, carrots, bananas, tomatoes, mangoes, passionfruit, physalis and many other products were ripe for the picking, all at wholesale prices to purchase for family consumption. Each stand was presented in the most attractive way possible.

Comparing the Minka Market to markets back in Germany, Hubounig said his country did not have such a significant variety and presentation of fruit.

"The best countries in Europe to see how it could work are Spain and Switzerland, because if you go to the supermarket there they have a very good presentation of foods, vegetables, meats and fish that inspire you to try something else," he said.

"In Germany, the problem is that 90% is dominated by supermarkets and they worry about price. The wholesale market does something different - that's why we work 80% with wholesale markets and 20% at the most with supermarkets.

"Some supermarkets are trying to obtain better quality and have a great display of products," he added.

Further details

The European buyer mission to Peru, organized by Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE) under the direction of SIPPO, has support from the Chamber of Swiss Commerce in Peru, PromPerú and Germany’s Import Promotion Desk (IPD).

One way Peruvian growers can connect with European buyers is by applying to the SIPPO program, oriented to SMEs with 250-300 employees that seek opportunities in the European market. S-GE/SIPPO helps growers access the European market through the participation of companies – either as individuals, with their own stands or through the PromPeru stand – at Fruit Logistica in Berlin.

Together with its buyers’ mission, S-GE/SIPPO also has a sourcing mission, and the program for fruits and vegetables supports companies in emerging economies to find European buyers for their products, also through participation at Fruit Logistica.

In South America the group is already working in Peru, but is looking for companies in Colombia due to the nation’s potential.

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