JAKARTA, INDONESIA — The Embassy of Chile in Indonesia, the Trade and Commercial Office of Chile in Indonesia and the Chilean Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX) have organised a workshop for Indonesian fresh fruit importers aimed at further boosting exports to the Southeast Asian country ahead of an expected Chile-Indonesia Free Trade Agreement.
The one-day activity, which was held on 1 November, focused on providing importers and retailers with an overview of the 2016-17 Chilean fresh produce export campaign and a preview of the upcoming season.
Staged at the Chilean Embassy in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, the event was hosted by the Chilean Ambassador, Gonzalo Mendoza Negri, and Chile’s Agricultural and Commercial Attaché to Indonesia, Juan Enrique Moya.
ASOEX’s Marketing Director for Europe and Asia, Charif Christian Carvajal, described Indonesia as a very important export market for Chile, particularly for table grapes. Although Indonesia currently only accounts for around 2% of Chile’s total fruit exports to Asia, Carvajal said it was a growing market for the South American nation.
“Chile exports some 8,649 tonnes of fruit to Indonesia every year, so it’s an important market for us,” he said. “With a population of close to 265 million, it is clearly also a market with a great deal of export potential for Chilean fresh fruits.”
As a country with a well-established culture of consuming fresh fruits and vegetables as part of the daily diet, Carvajal said Indonesia presented Chile with significant opportunities for export growth.
At the current time, table grapes – principally Red Globe – account for an estimated 93% of Chilean fruit exports to Indonesia, followed by smaller volumes of kiwifruit and pears.
According to Juan Enrique Moya, Agricultural and Commercial Attaché for Chile in Indonesia, the activity “comes at a significant time for Chilean-Indonesian relations, with the two countries currently finalising details of a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Chile and Indonesia”.
Once the CEPA is finalised, Chile will become the first South American country to have a Free Trade Agreement with Indonesia, following similar deals between Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam, and the Andean nation.
About ASOEX
The Chilean Fresh Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX) is a non-profit private entity representing Chile’s fresh fruit growers and exporters. ASOEX’s membership base consists of exporters who have their own fruit, as well as traders of fruit from third parties. Together, they represent 96% of all fresh fruit exported from Chile. To learn more about ASOEX, please visit www.asoex.cl or www.fruitsfromchile.com
Source: The Chilean Fresh Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX)
