UK: Peru To Serve Up Taste Sensation At IFE 2015

LONDON –  Rapidly rising interest in Peruvian cuisine is generating new demand for top quality ingredients as more and more consumers come across the exciting flavours offered by Peruvian gastronomy thanks to its various cultural influences.

Nowhere is this more the case than in London where the opening of a number of high quality Peruvian restaurants in the past two years — among them Lima, Ceviche, Coya and Andina — has made a profound impression with regards to the incredible freshness, presentation and innovation of the food ingredients used.

“Peru is one of the leading players on the global culinary scene,” notes Jaime Cárdenas, UK director at the Peru Trade and Investment Office in the UK. “The spread of new Peruvian restaurants opening abroad has raised the profile of our food exports and created demand for the ingredients that we can supply, many of which are exclusive to our country.”

To showcase all Peru has to offer, four of the country’s leading food and drink exporters will join the Peru Trade and Investment Office at IFE 2015 on 22-25 March as they make their first appearance as exhibitors at the UK’s leading international food and drink event.

Exporters Chakarunas Trading, Danper Trujillo, Gandules and Corporación Valentina will be on hand to discuss the wide variety of Peruvian food and drink products they are able to supply to the UK market.

The cornucopia of items on offer ranges from traditional items such as the finest Peruvian coffee, cocoa and chocolate to an exciting range of highly nutritious Peruvian superfoods such as quinoa, maca, cat’s claw, camu camu, sacha inchi and sangre de grado (dragon's blood), all of which are produced organically and sourced from growers and indigenous communities located in the central highlands and Amazon of the South American country.

A wide range of peppers will also be presented, including bell peppers, piquillo peppers, jalapeños as well as cherry peppers.

Fresh and canned asparagus, artichokes, marinated products, sauces and tapenades will be on display too, together with frozen Andean grains, jams, jellies and other frozen ethnic products.

Peruvian food and drink exports are climbing steadily year-on-year as demand for ingredients from the South American country continues to expand.

“Over the past few years Peru has emerged as a significant exporter of agricultural products,” notes Cárdenas. “The UK is a very important market for Peru and one where we see great scope for driving our current export trajectory forwards.”

Peru has a longstanding export history with the UK since the 1990s when exports of fresh asparagus and table grapes began.

Since then avocados, citrus, mangoes, snow peas, bananas, pomegranates and most recently blueberries have been added to the export offer, as well as a growing number of other food and drink items.

“Europe is the largest market for Peru and within the region the UK is the second-biggest destination after the Netherlands. We are very keen to take care of this special relationship as we develop the market further,” Cárdenas says.

Agricultural exports from Peru to the UK rose from US$183 million (£122 million) in 2013 to US$199 million (£132 million) in 2014, an increase of 8.7 per cent. Shipments are anticipated to grow at the same rate in 2015. These figures exclude coffee, sales of which climbed from US$17.7 million (£11.7 million) in 2013 to US$20.8 million (£13.8 million) in 2014.  

Nearly all of the products Peru exports to the world are available in both conventional and organic formats. The country’s exporters all comply to international certification standards in order to guarantee the safety and quality of the products on offer.

Meet us at IFE 2015!

Peru will exhibit at IFE on 22-25 March at the ExCeL London exhibition centre. Come and visit us on Stand N3550 to see first-hand our exciting range of Peruvian food and drink products and to find out more about sourcing from Peru. We hope to meet you there!

About the Peru Trade and Investment Office in the UK

The Peru Trade and Investment Office in the UK forms part of the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism. Headquartered in London at the Embassy of Peru in Great Britain, the office is responsible for developing and strengthening the trading and economic ties between Peruvian and UK businesses with the aim of fostering greater trade and investment between the two nations.

For more information about Peruvian trade, visit:

Peru Embassy UK
Agap
PromPerú
Mincetur

Source: Peru Trade and Investment Office in the UK