Honduran oriental vegetable producers successfully broke into the Canadian market last week by placing a shipment, which represents the first exported container, taking advantage of the tariff benefits of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two economies.
This shipment was achieved thanks to ongoing negotiations between Honduran exporters at a recent business meeting in Nicaragua, said Vanesa RodrÃguez, Director of International Trade at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Mexico.
The export was made at the beginning of last week, with the support of the CCIC, in this way "this valuable export materialized, by sending the first container to the Canadian market," RodrÃguez said.
This negotiation was carried out with a buyer and aroused the interest of the Honduran exporters who have high hopes for a Canadian market with more than 37 million potential consumers and a high per capita income.
According to commercial intelligence studies, the Canadian market demands agricultural products that are produced in Honduras, which represents a commercial window that can be exploited by taking advantage of the tariff benefits of the FTA.
The executive said that there are advanced negotiations to export coffee to that market, "as well as for other products such as cocoa, rambutan, vegetables and fruits."
The National Health and Food Safety Service (Senasa) stated at a meeting that in the case of eggplants grown in Honduras, each day it positions itself better in the United States market, where it is considered a star product.
The biggest eggplant cultivation area is Comayagua, which also grows other vegetables, such as chives, hairy cucumber, squash, and okra.
The main destinations for these vegetables are the United States and Italy.
There are about 15 processing plants dedicated to processing and exporting these products, which generate an increase in direct and indirect jobs.
The American cities that consume these products the most are Miami, Boston, Detroit, New York, and Baltimore. The top buyers, however, are Asian companies, such as Joco Produce, Double Green, Caribbean Fruits, Vannas, and Tropical Fruits.
Source: latribuna.hn