Export of fruit and vegetables towards the Americas

Export of fruit and vegetables towards the Americas



Objective: This programme concerns an information campaign for fruits and vegetables in Canada, the United States, Mexico and Colombia.

The supply in the European and Belgian fruits and vegetables market is increasing. The EU market is therefore showing signs of saturation and due to the import ban that Vladimir Putin introduced with immediate effect on 7 August 2014 for agricultural and horticultural products from the EU, it is affecting a very high number of sub-sectors within European agriculture. The highly export-focused Belgian fruits and vegetables sector has also been affected by the import ban. 

Growth opportunities outside the EU can be seen in the markets of Canada, the United States, Mexico and Colombia. Therefore the aim is to set up a European campaign in these 4 target countries. Among the general objectives is the creation of familiarity around the quality of fresh fruits and vegetables from the European Union in general. Building up a good image of fresh fruits and vegetables from the European Union in these 4 target countries can be done by placing the focus on their quality, the sustainable production methods, traceability and care for food safety through controls and increasing the consumption.

Target group: The campaign is targeted at fresh produce professionals in Canada, the United States, Mexico and Colombia.

Action strategy: The strategy is rolled out over the 4 target countries by means of the elaborated highly European-oriented concept “Taste of Europe”, which is already being used in the running European “third countries” project. At the end of the programme, the expectancy is to see the campaign had an impact on the awareness of fruits and vegetables from the European Union on the target markets (Canada, US, Mexico and Colombia). When evaluating this campaign it is desired to notice a positive shift at the end of the campaign for the campaign message. The aim it is also to see a positive economic impact, rising export for the European fruits and vegetables to the target markets.

Budget: € 857,918.90 for 3 years