ANUFOOD Provides Exposure and Sales for U.S. Bean Ingredients

During April 12-14, 2022, the third edition of the ANUFOOD trade show, which is the most important food and beverage fair in South America, took place in São Paulo – Brazil.  Using funds from the MAP program for the MERCOSUR region, with the support of FAS São Paulo, which organized a pavilion dedicated to products from the USA, the U.S. Dry Bean Council (USDBC) organized a booth at the show.  Its main objective was to expose the Brazilian trade to the different varieties of U.S. dry beans and bean ingredients, such as flour and protein concentrates, with the support of Honest Origins, one of its members.  Promoting bean ingredients is a new focus of the USDBC, and this was one of its first international promotional initiatives for bean ingredients.

Due to the fact that Brazil is one of the world’s largest producers of beans, but does not yet produce bean ingredients, there is a great opportunity for the products of the U.S. industry to meet the demand of the growing plant-based food market.  This segment is looking for new ingredients and products that are high in protein and allergen-free.  By establishing a distribution channel in Brazil, Honest Origins will be initially able to almost exclusively supply bean flour to the national market.  This will enable the dry beans produced in the USA to enter the highly competitive market in Brazil in a way that will prove their quality.

As ANUFOOD 2022 is the first trade fair for the USDBC with a 100% focus on flours and bean ingredients, the sales projected from the show are still relatively small for the second half of 2022, at approximately US$400,000.   Using programs, such as MAP and EMP, for additional promotional activities in MERCOSUR in subsequent years, the expectation is that there will be a sales increase of 150%, to US$1,000,000 for 2023.

It is important, however, that the U.S. Dry Bean Council and its members maintain roots in Brazil and find local distributors who can represent their companies by importing, distributing, and promoting their products.  As emphasized by the FAS São Paulo in its pre-show briefing to U.S. exhibitors, Brazilians, especially smaller companies, generally prefer to deal with local representatives instead of negotiating with and buying directly from the American market.

USA Pavillion at ANUFOOD 2022

USDBC Booth and Representative, Focused on Bean Ingredients