Local food exporters urged to tap Chinese market

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is encouraging local food exporters to tap the vast Chinese market.

The DTI said Filipino food exporters should take advantage of the Chinese market which recently opened up its economy to traded goods and services from the international market.

The DTI pointed out that China has significantly reduced its tariff on some key Philippine exports like canned tuna, fruits, vegetable fats and oil, coconut milk, garments, electronic calculating machines, sound and video tapes, magnetic discs and paper products.

The DTI said the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Guanzhou, China is arranging an in-store promotional activity with Beatrice China, a multinational conglomerate with more than 10 years of experience in food manufacturing and distribution in Europe.

Under the proposed arrangement, Filipino food products will be available to consumers in Southwestern China through the 10-store chain of Beatrice in Chengdu.

If the in-store promotion is successful, the PTIC said, it could be replicated in 100 other Beatrice outlets all over China.

The in-store promotion is seen as a marketing opportunity for Philippine food exporters.

In a business plan prepared by the brand development team of the DTI, government hopes to generate about $1.25 billion in export sales from food products in 2004 by implementing export strategies and pursuing tariff reduction negotiations with major food markets in China, Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia.