News
Adding Value to Agricultural Domestic and Export Sales
Date: 2008-05-22
On May 20, 2008, Jeffrey Spear, one of the leading american experts in design, strategic marketing and planning discussed current concepts in design with representatives of 36 Serbian agribusinesses and design companies.
"The Value of Marketing - Adding Value to Domestic and Export Sales Through Design" was the main topic. Mr. Spear established his design studio in 1978, and has worked with a number of well known food and agricultural producers such as BaskinRobbins, Marron Foods and Timboon Farmhouse Cheese.
His presentation is co-sponsored by the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, Fruits of Serbia Association and the USAID Agribusiness Project.
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Serbia Featured at the Fancy Food Show in New York
Date: 2008-05-20
The USAID Agribusiness Project, Serbian Investment and Export Promotion Agency (SIEPA), Serbian Ministry of Agriculture and Serbian companies will showcase Serbia’s forest mushrooms, famous raspberries, and fruit jams and juices at the “54th Summer Fancy Food Show” in New York from June 29 to July 1, 2008.
The Fancy Food Show hosts thousands of exhibitors from around the world and regularly attracts approximately 20,000 attendees from specialty food, gift and department stores, supermarkets, restaurants and other related businesses. Serbia’s exhibition, “Natural Serbia” will feature top quality food producers who anticipate increased sales from their participation in the show.
Since 2004, Serbian firms have gained approximately $6 million annually in new business from foreign buyers attending the Fancy Food Show.
New Businesses Connected
Date: 2008-05-19
New Businesses Connected – Serbian Agribusinesses Promoted at 75th International Agricultural Fair in Novi Sad Expect 1.5 Million Euros in Sales.
From May 10 – 17th over 2,000 exhibitors gathered at 75th International Agricultural Fair in Novi Sad, the major agricultural event in Southeastern Europe. Among exhibitors, 13 Serbian agricultural producers and associations attended the fair in coordination with two USAID programs: Economic Security and Agribusiness: Galant and IG-LU (Kraljevo), Fontana (Preševo), Natural Food (Bujanovac), Moravica (Arilje), Subex (Novi Pazar), Frigo-Nais (Kuršumlija), Dairy Zlatibor (Užice), Begeški povrtari (Begej), Fruitland (Subotica), Agrograf (Arilje), Cooperative Kulen (Bački Petrovac), and Bilje Borča (Belgrade). The USAID Agribusiness and Economic Security Projects provided roughly $40,000 to support producers from Serbia in exhibiting at this event. USAID’s support entails the construction and design of the joint stand, the lease of refrigerators and coolers during the fair, the design and printing of brochures, flyers and large poster boards and other promotional materials. All companies also received training in “Sales and Efficient Trade Show participation”.
Getting Ready for European Markets
Date: 2008-05-15
Over 100 Serbian Agribusinesses and Supporting Organizations at GLOBALGAP Conference in Novi Sad, May 15th, 2008.
GLOBALGAP is a private sector voluntary program for certification following EU food safety requirements, such as traceability from “Farm to Fork”. GLOBALGAP certification is growingly an imperative quality standard set by European wholesale and retail chains as well as consumers of food products. Its adoption would therefore greatly help Serbian agribusinesses to remove existing barriers for their food export – this was the clear conclusion of the GLOBALGAP Conference which took place on May 15th, 2008 at the Novi Sad Agricultural Fair, with over 100 participants. Governmental and business representatives shared experiences and results with international experts from Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the United States with regard to GLOBALGAP implementation. The Conference was organized with the support from the Vojvodina Provincial Government in cooperation with Germany’s GTZ, Austria’s Development Agency, the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and USAID’s Agribusiness Project.
In order to foster GLOBALGAP’s implementation among Serbian food producers, it was agreed that donors would continue their joint support to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, academics as well as agribusinesses and certifying agents in the form of food safety training, certification activities and awareness raising, with the aim to provide healthy products for local and international consumers and advance Serbian exports.
