The meetings aimed to establish business relationships, resulting in sales and distributorships. One such success was a business relationship established between Chicago-based City Foods dba Bea’s Best and the buyer from Saudi Arabia. City Foods, founded in 1939 by Eugene Kohn and currently led by his son Kenneth, totals more than $34 million in yearly sales and continues to grow; its union employees now produce approximately 500,000 pounds a week of fresh, top-quality products sold at retailers and wholesalers all over the country as well as in the Caribbean, the Bahamas, Central, and South America and the Middle East. The company sells a wide range of meat products under Bea’s Best brand, including raw, cooked, fresh, and salted, and works with domestic and international customers to develop their private label lines.

City Foods has regularly participated in Food Export’s Buyers Missions and other activities since 2009. According to Scott Weiss, Sales Director, the buyer from Saudi Arabia was an ideal candidate to help the company expand its sales in the Middle East region. The Saudi company is a medium-sized importer and distributor, with 70% of its imports directed to the food service and manufacturing sectors and 30% to the retail industry. The company has made one container-load shipment of Halal Breakfast Beef with commitments for two more containers. According to Scott, “Success was the result of our ability to work closely with our customers to define their specific requirements and then to execute on those requirements, as well as work through their private label development. We anticipate ongoing business with this buyer. As for the future, Bea’s Best will continue to use Food Export programs to identify new customers in key international markets.”

Above: Photo of Scott Weiss, Sales Director, City Foods dba Bea’s Best at Food Export’s Midwest Buyers Mission in Chicago.

Food Export uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) to help America’s small businesses increase their exports of food and agricultural products. As these exports increase, these small businesses are creating jobs and improving the strength and stability of our agricultural economy. Food Export-Midwest and Food Export-Northeast are non-profit organizations that work in collaboration with their member state departments of agriculture and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. They offer a wide range of programs and services that help boost America’s agricultural exports.

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This woman-owned company was referred to Food Export-Midwest by the Indiana State Department of Agriculture in 2021 for assistance in expanding its products internationally. BNutty started participating in Food Export’s Branded Program to defer costs associated with marketing their products internationally. The program helped the small company double its marketing budget with 50% reimbursement on expenses incurred with social media advertising in foreign markets, attending international trade shows, shipping product samples to potential buyers, and producing promotional marketing materials.   

In 2022, BNutty Gourmet Peanut Butter participated in Food Export-Midwest’s Branded Program, intending to expand its product market share in Saudi Arabia, Japan, France, Germany, Singapore, and the Philippines. This past February, the Portage, Indiana supplier reported that with participation in the Market Access Program (MAP) funded Branded Program, they completed impactful sales to Saudi Arabia last year and project to complete double that over the next twelve months. Most notably, this sale marks a first-time export sale to the market for BNutty.  

BNutty Co-Founder Carol Podolak shared, “Food Export has been a critical partner for BNutty – they make it possible for us to succeed overseas and grow our business back home. Their ability to provide technical expertise, sales opportunities, and marketing dollars on a cost-effective basis helps a company of our size stay competitive in challenging markets abroad. Groups like Food Export are important public investments allowing our businesses to exceed our goals.” 

BNutty is a gourmet peanut butter company, minority/woman-owned and operated. The company was founded by two self-professed soccer moms in Northwest Indiana who wanted to raise funds for youth soccer programs. Since 2014, they have added 74 jobs, expanded from a home kitchen to a 48,000-square-foot facility, and are happy to share that Food Export has helped them grow into 13 countries. They utilize Food Export’s educational services, matchmaking platforms, and leverage the marketing dollars in our cost-share program. BNutty Gourmet Peanut Butter has been part of the Branded Program for two years and has already applied for 2023 funding. 

Food Export uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) to help America’s small businesses increase their exports of food and agricultural products. As these exports increase, these small businesses are creating jobs and improving the strength and stability of our agricultural economy. Food Export-Midwest and Food Export-Northeast are non-profit organizations that work in collaboration with their member state departments of agriculture and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. They offer a wide range of programs and services that help boost America’s agricultural exports.

The post Gourmet Peanut Butter Brand Continues to Expand Exports appeared first on Food Export Association of the Midwest USA.

This past February Aquamar was able to report earning over $700,000 in sales with these marketing efforts while also projecting to complete over $1.3M more in sales over the next twelve months. They also gained 14 new foreign buyer contacts and established 6 new agent relationships. This is a 77% increase in growth from their sales from using the Branded Program in 2021.

Aquamar is a supplier of surimi seafood products. They specialize in varieties such as sticks, flakes, chunks, and shreds. They produce the “highest quality and sustainable surimi products in styles that met the needs of food service, retailers, value-added processors, and consumers.”

They joined Food Export-Northeast’s Branded Program in 2019. Since they started working with Food Export, they have also participated in various other Food Export programs and activities including webinars, Buyers Missions, and the Online Product Catalog.

Food Export uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) to help America’s small businesses increase their exports of food and agricultural products. As these exports increase, these small businesses are creating jobs and improving the strength and stability of our agricultural economy. Food Export-Midwest and Food Export-Northeast are non-profit organizations that work in collaboration with their member state departments of agriculture and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. They offer a wide range of programs and services that help boost America’s agricultural exports.

The post Sustainable Seafood Products Gain Export Sales to Multiple Markets appeared first on Food Export Association of the Midwest USA.

For ODR Foods Corporation, a healthy and innovative product trading company from Lancaster, New York, this Virtual Trade Mission to Middle East was not the first mission with Food Export. Company’s Chief Customer Officer, Shehzad Raza traveled to Dubai in 2019 for Food Export’s Focused Trade Mission to Dubai. But this 2020 event was the first-time the New York Supplier participated in a Food Export Virtual Trade Mission.

This is what Shehzad had to say after the event, “I really liked working with the team. Everyone was so helpful and assisted with making things happen. We are very hopeful to grow our business.”

ODR Foods Corporation met with 9 buyers in total from United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia and established 2 new distributorships. The company currently projects to complete $150,000 in sales from this event and signed up for Food Export’s Focused Trade Mission to Middle East scheduled for December of 2021.

ODR Foods Corporation is committed to deliver healthy, delicious, and innovative products. Their product line includes breakfast cereals, cakes and desserts, soups and seasonings, among other products in their portfolio.

Food Export Focused Trade Missions are a premiere activity successfully organized by Food Export for many years. It allows U.S. food companies to travel and experience local markets and its landscape as well as meet potential in-market buyers at one-on-one meetings. Since traveling became almost impossible in March of 2020, Food Export successfully shifted to Virtual Trade Missions which, with the help of technology, allows one-on-one meetings with potential buyers from different markets to be conducted virtually. In 2020 Food Export completed 6 Virtual Trade Missions that received positive feedback both from suppliers and buyers. This year [2021] Food Export has 11 Virtual Trade Missions planned.

Food Export uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) to help America’s small businesses increase their exports of food and agricultural products. As these exports increase, these small businesses are creating jobs and improving the strength and stability of our agricultural economy. Food Export-Midwest and Food Export-Northeast are non-profit organizations that work in collaboration with their member state departments of agriculture and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. They offer a wide range of programs and services that help boost America’s agricultural exports.

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