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WEST VIRGINIA AGRIBUSINESSES EYING CHINA MARKET IN 2007
With 1.2 billion people and a skyrocketing economy, China stands poised to be one of the 21st century’s major manufacturing powers. It’s also poised to be one of the world’s largest consumers of foreign goods – a fact not lost on the West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA), which is planning an aggressive entry into that market in the coming year through a multi-year initiative sponsored by the Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA).
WVDA Marketing Specialist Cindy Martel will be the project manager for a delegation of companies from West Virginia and other SUSTA member-states that will meet buyers there and learn about the Chinese market.
“I’m proud of the leadership role the Department will be taking in SUSTA this year,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass. “This has been a valuable resource for West Virginia producers in the past, and I’m sure that will provide even more opportunities in the coming year.”
Commissioner Douglass was one of the driving forces behind the formation of SUSTA in 1973. The non-profit agricultural export trade association is comprised of departments of agriculture in 15 southern states and Puerto Rico. It is funded by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA-FAS), member states and private companies.
Martel – who served as assistant project manager on a similar trip in September – said that the potential of the market is enormous.
“The U.S. delegation spent six days at the ‘World Food of China Show’ in Shanghai and the results were fantastic,” said Martel. “The metro coastal cities are an excellent market for high-value-added products. The residents have disposable income and large-scale sales are a definite possibility. A coffee company from Puerto Rico sold an entire year’s crop at the show.”
SUSTA sponsored a “Southern Originals Pavilion” – complete with a built-in culinary theater for product demonstrations and samplings, and arranged for U.S. companies to take part in one-on-one meetings with Chinese buyers. Company representatives also attended a market briefing with the agricultural trade officer from the U.S. Embassy for an overview of market prospects and helpful business practices.
A “reverse trade mission” of Chinese buyers will visit the U.S. this spring to visit producers in Baltimore, Md., Columbia, S.C., and Texas. Martel said their itinerary will also include stops in West Virginia, although details are still pending at this point.
The 2007 trade mission won’t be China’s first taste of West Virginia products. Eastern Panhandle poultry producer Pilgrim’s Pride for years has exported chicken paws – considered a delicacy in the Far East.
Martel added that SUSTA is funding an intern in West Virginia this year. Summersville native and recent West Virginia University graduate Mary Legg will be working with WVDA Marketing and Development staff to help state agribusinesses expand market opportunities and to improve their competitiveness at the national and international level.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org.
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