Mission will promote a series of initiatives to the participants, which will have the opportunity to get to know the Canadian food and beverage market up close and have their products tasted by potential customers

By Sérgio Siscaro

Offer your members an out-of-the-ordinary experience that adds practical knowledge of the Canadian market and boosts business performance. This is the objective of the trade mission being developed by the Chamber of Commerce Brazil-Canada (CCBC) to take Brazilian food and beverage producers to the Salon International de l’Alimentation (Sial), in Montréal (Québec) from 18 to 27 of April this year.

The initiative, however, is not limited to merely taking Brazilian entrepreneurs to exhibit their products at the event; it is, in fact, a brief immersion in the Canadian food and beverage business environment, in which participants will have the opportunity to interact more incisively with potential business partners.

The mission includes a dinner for VIP guests, in which the Brazilian Chef Mari Valentini will offer Canadians dishes made with products brought by the Brazilian delegation, for tasting; contacts with local influencers; the possibility of knowing better how products are sold on the shelves of points of sale in Canada; and detailed information about the competition. In addition, technical visits and business rounds will be promoted with potential business partners, both in Montréal and Toronto.

“The initiatives included in the mission go far beyond just exhibiting products at Sial. It is a program of practical results for the participants – who will leave this experience with a deeper understanding of the Canadian market reality, and will have talked with the main players involved”, says the CCBC International Business Consultant, Armínio Calonga Jr.

Strategic market

The last edition of Sial, held in April 2020, was entirely online, due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. Even so, the event registered significant numbers: 250 exhibitors and brands from more than 31 countries were gathered, and around 18,300 virtual visitors from 112 countries were received – which shows the importance of the event for producers who want to join the Canadian food and beverage market.

It means that is a very promising market, especially for niche products. According to a survey conducted by the CCBC, Canadian consumers are willing to pay more for items that are healthy and of quality, with exotic and unique flavors, and that have been produced in accordance with social and environmental responsibility standards. In addition, Canada can also be used as a platform for further expansion into markets such as the United States or Europe.

In the 2019 edition of Sial, held in Toronto, the CCBC mission accounted for 266 contacts, 57 meetings, five technical visits and an audience of 60 people at the two tasting dinners promoted on the occasion. “This is a comprehensive initiative, which gives participants all the conditions to establish contacts, make their products known and eventually do business in a strategic and very promising market”, concludes Calonga Jr.