Audio: 2016 USMEF Latin American Showcase Returns to Panama City

he sixth annual U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Latin American Product Showcase will be held July 20-21 in Panama City, Panama – the place where it was launched in 2011. Over the past five years, the showcase has developed into the premier gathering for exporters and buyers conducting business in Central America, South America and the Caribbean.

Gerardo Rodriguez, USMEF marketing director for Mexico, Central America and the Dominican Republic, said the 2015 showcase, held in Costa Rica, attracted 44 USMEF member companies and nearly 100 buyers from 16 countries. He said this summer’s event may be even larger and will include a number of educational seminars and opportunities for one-on-one business meetings. An emphasis will be placed on traditional Latin American cuisine, with dishes from participating countries being prepared using U.S. beef, pork and lamb.

Since its inception, the Nebraska Beef Council and Illinois Soybean Association have provided financial support for the Latin American Product Showcase. Support for this year’s event is also being provided by the Beef Checkoff Program, the Pork Checkoff and the USDA Market Access Program (MAP). Online registration can be found at www.usmef.org.

TRANSCRIPT:

Ralph Loos: The U.S. Meat Export Federation has announced the location of its 2016 Latin American Product Showcase. This July, the showcase will return to Panama City – where the event was first launched in 2011. Regional marketing director Gerardo Rodriguez has more details in this USMEF report.

Gerardo Rodriguez: Five years ago, this product showcase was born in Panama City as a pilot program activity. We did it having around 10 members, USMEF members and exhibitors. It was a great success. But the next year we made some improvements and we made it a bigger event, and last year we did it in Costa Rica, having an amazing number – 44 exporters, 44 members – were able to go there and get to meet with people from 16 countries, because we now have the chance to include the Caribbean. We reached over 100 buyers. So now we’re having the Latin American Product Showcase taking place in Panama City again – it will be where the first product showcase took place.

Ralph Loos: Along with seminars and business meetings to promote U.S. beef, pork and lamb, Rodriguez says buyers at this year’s Showcase will be able to sample traditional Latin American cuisine prepared with U.S. red meat.

Gerardo Rodriguez: There’s a lot of seminars we are planning. Also we are planning a gastronomic festival, in the fact that we are having cuisine, typical cuisine made in the different countries. We will have all different types of typical traditional dishes using products from the U.S. So we want the people to get to see the business opportunities, yes, we want them to learn about the trends, yes, but also we want them to see and learn a little about the culture of Panama.

Ralph Loos: For more information, please visit USMEF.org. For the U.S. Meat Export Federation, I’m Ralph Loos.

Source: USMEF