Workshop scheduled for Tuesday, December 1st
By Diego Flammini, Farms.com
Agriculture and food businesses in New Mexico are invited to a free, daylong workshop that focuses on how to increase business via exporting.
“Every food and agricultural business owner in New Mexico who wants to grow their business should at least think about exporting,” said New Mexico Secretary of Agriculture Jeff Witte. “The state’s pecan and dairy producers have seen tremendous success in foreign markets – but so have local producers of beans, onions, manufactured food products, and more. There’s room for everybody at the table.”
The “Explore Exporting” event will take place Tuesday, December 1st from 8am to 5pm in Las Cruces. It is being co-hosted by the New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA) and the Western United States Agricultural Trade Association (WUSATA) – a non-profit trade organization that helps provide training, market research and other resources to agricultural companies throughout New Mexico and 12 other western states.
Topics of the workshop include:
- Global consumption trends
- Basics of shipping logistics
- Measures for food and agricultural companies to consider if they want to expand
- Overviews of federal and state resources
The final two hours of the show will feature WUSATA representatives meeting with individual businesses to answer questions and provide consultations on a first-come, first-serve schedule.
According to the Foreign Agricultural Service, New Mexico’s agricultural exports were valued at more than $800 million in 2013. With the new Trans-Pacific Partnership on the horizon, New Mexico agriculture could become a more valuable commodity.
“Nearly 95 percent of the world’s customers live outside the U.S.,” WUSATA Deputy Director Janet Kenefsky said. “The recent signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement will unlock new opportunities for Western U.S. agribusinesses to develop new markets and expand their current global footprint as a result of tariff eliminations in TPP countries.”
Anyone interested in attending the event must register by Friday, November 27th.
Join the discussion and tell us if you’ll consider attending the Explore Exporting workshop in December.