Sector brand 'Patagonia Mussel' is intended to highlight the Chilean mussel in the foreign markets. (Photo: Patagonia Mussel)
CHILEWednesday, November 05, 2014, 23:50 (GMT + 9)
The sector brand 'Patagonia Mussel' had its debut this week in China, at a seminar held in Shanghai with the theme "Discover the taste of Patagonia, discover the taste of Chilean mussel."
The event was attended by Chilean exporters and Chinese importers, who met with various specialised media representatives.
The aim of the promoters of the brand -- ProChile and Asociación Gremial Miticultores de Chile (AmiChile) -- is to increase Chilean mussel exports to the Chinese market and position it as a premium product that has excellent quality, is rich in protein and omega-3 and is naturally farmed.
This initiative was implemented in Russia between 2011 and 2012, and then in Brazil between 2013 and 2014.
Now the target is China, where the focus is on four cities: Shanghai, Beijing, Qingdao and Hong Kong.
ProChile commercial director in Shanghai, Cesar Suarez attended this seminar; as well as business managers of the six companies involved in the project Patagonia Mussel in China: St. Andrews, Orizon, Sud Maris, Toralla, Camanchaca and Ria Austral.
According to PROCHILE statistics, Chilean mussel exports grew in recent years and reached a value of USD 184 million in 2013.
The main destinations were Spain, France, US, Italy and Russia.
The shipments to the Russian market amounted to USD 14 million last year while exports to Brazil totalled nearly USD 3 million.
According to Suarez, "the mussels have not yet made a strong appearance with their supply in China", so the launch of the sector brand Patagonia Mussel is considered essential to achieve this end.
Apart from being able to show the quality of Chilean food to the demanding Chinese food importers that had been invited, this seminar provides Chilean exporters the opportunity to highlight the tariff advantages resulting from the free trade agreement (FTA) with China.
In this regard, Suarez stated the FTA will allow the Chilean mussel to be exported with zero tariffs from January 2015, “which will contribute to have a very competitive price."
Meanwhile, the president of AmiChile Commercial Committee, Pedro Pablo Ovalle, said they were "very happy to enter the Chinese market with our mussels to respond to the growing consumer demand to have access to first quality seafood, which is also healthy and nutritious, and is supplied at affordable prices."
"Our products have already been successfully exported to the major markets of Europe and North America, and we want to partner with Chinese importers to build long-term trade relations," he added.
This Chilean initiative includes a series of marketing and promotional activities, such as the participation in food shows, culinary events, organization of cooking shows with Chilean seafood, partnerships with local chefs and communication through social networks to make importers, distributors, chefs, retailers and local opinion leaders aware of the culinary and nutritional benefits of this product.