BioFach Latin America Seminar
 Alajuela - Costa Rica
 September 29 and 30, 2005
On September 29 and 30, 2005, a BioFach Latin America Seminar was held in Alajuela, Costa Rica, addressing the topic “Secrets of Selling Organic Products in Central America”. The event was organized in partnership with the Intelligence Center for Sustainable Markets, with head offices in the city of Alajuela, and was supported by Planeta Orgânico, and by the INCAE Business School, ICCO, EcoMercado, Hivos and the Auto-Mercado chain, all Costa Rican entities
 
he theme of the event focused on the development of organic food markets and the fair trade market. Agronomical Engineer Gabriela Centeno, of CIMS, was responsible for the coordination, together with Mr. Álvaro Werneck of Planeta Orgânico.
T After the presentation on the BioFach Latin America fair that would take place in November, in Rio de Janeiro, Mr. Werneck reported all the work done in the years 2004 and 2005, in connection with which Planeta Orgânico was present in several Latin American countries. Then the work of the seminar officially began.
Mr. Laurence Pratt, director and founder of CIMS, gave a talk on Marketing and Opportunities in the organic market in Central American countries; his presentation addressed, in a very clear manner, development trends in the organic food markets, focusing on the participation of large retail chains in the sector. The talk given by the Brazilian representative at the event, Mr. Fabio Ramos of Agrosuisse, addressed the Stage of Organic Farming and the development of the organic food market in Brazil. His presentation was enlightening because it showed the advances achieved in the sector in the last three years.
The seminar offered five panels for debate. The first panel was about “Selling in the Local Market”; Mr. Henry Guerrero, of APODAR, the Organic Producers Association, and Mr. Efraim Sánchez of the company Orgânico Los Nascientes, presented reports on the production, processing and sale of fresh food. Both pointed out that there were several bottlenecks in all segments of the organic food chain, especially in sales.
The panel “Creating Markets” presented Ms. Mayara López, of the company Oro Verde, and Mr. Noel Payne, representative of an Alternative Trade entity. Oro Verde is linked to CEDECO (Educational Corporation for the Development of Costa Rica), an entity whose objective is to help to bring to consumers information and education regarding the aspects of the process of integrity and benefits introduced by organic farming and ecology.
The panel “Selling Retail – retailers’ vision and experience” was presented by Mr. Oscar Porras, the representative of the Auto-Mercado retail chain, who pointed out the effort that his chain has been making in order to have organic products on its shelves. In this panel, it was possible to observe the similarities with the development of organic products in supermarkets, that is, both the criteria and the conditions are similar. In this panel, Mr. Luis Sândi, the representative of the CSU chain, also made a presentation.
Another important panel was “Initiatives in Support of Organic Production and Sales in Central America”, with Mr. Pablo Alvarez of HIVOS as moderator. Ms. Amélia Ortiz, of EcoMercado, gave a presentation, stressing the importance of equitable trade in organic products, aiming at promoting the sale of organic products and fair trade, increasing foreign, regional and local trade, facilitating the access of small and medium-size producers, and contributing to increased access to better market opportunities. Ms. Ruth Junkin, of CECOECO, and Ms. Rhina de Rehmann, representative of El Salvador and of Alianza Centroamericana (Central American Alliance), also made their presentations.

Ms. Rehmann is a promoter and forerunner of the participation of several Latin American countries in the BioFach fair that takes place every year at the city of Nuremberg, Germany. Her presentation emphasized the growth in the participation of exhibitors’ sales in the last two versions of BioFach in Germany. Sales grew from 1 million dollars to 3 million dollars.
 
Dr. Juan Aguirre, of the Boston University’s School for Field Studies, presented the results of his 6-year research in Costa Rica. Professor Aguirre studied the market and consumption of organic farm products in Costa Rica, interviewing many consumers and producers.
The conclusion of the work indicates that there are markets that are not supplied and that, as the supply grows, it will be possible to build a balanced market with competitive prices and quality products. His research also reveals the role of the consumers in building the market for organic food, and their importance and requirements.
The panel on regulation and certification, under the title of “National Label and alternative certifications as instruments for the development of local markets”, was presented by Mr. Salvador Garibay, of FIBL, a Swiss entity promoting the development of organic agriculture in several countries. Mr. Garibay spoke about the history of organic food certification in Switzerland. One aspect that called attention was the evolution of the model indicating a balance among methods, always seeking the feasibility of the certification process, and not a process that is unfeasible because of measures that are inappropriate for producers.
Mr. Manoel Amador, an agronomical engineer, one of the pioneers of organic agriculture in Costa Rica, director of CEDECO and a member of the MAELA (Latin American Agro-ecological Movement), presented the results of local markets in several towns in Costa Rica. His presentation also addressed the experience gained by Rede EcoVida, in the Southern states of Brazil. He pointed out the existence of several street markets, at which the producer has direct contact with the consumer and builds more solid and lasting social links, ensuring the development of more sustainable markets for organic food.
 
The event was closed with a get-together cocktail party for all the participants from the different countries, namely Venezuela, Peru, Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, USA, the Netherlands and Mexico

The event will make a decisive contribution to the development of markets in these countries; and the discussion of the various experiences left everyone sure of one thing: an intensive exchange among the countries of Latin America is necessary, especially in order to develop organic food markets in a fair and sustainable manner.
 

 

Web Design 2A2