At the beginning of last year, the South American and African Fruit Trade Association (SAFTA) was established with the goal of creating an equal negotiating position for exporters, evaluating products objectively, and educating them on the requirements for bringing their products to the European market. After a year, SAFTA's Michiel and Jeroen Den Haerynck see that significant growth has been achieved, but the biggest challenge remains telling the story in the right way.
SAFTA was founded with the idea of giving exporters a fair position in the supply chain. "South American, African, and Asian exporters to Europe are often taken advantage of. If something goes wrong in the supply chain, costs are frequently passed on to them, or they are forced to accept the lowest possible price," explains Jeroen Den Haerynck, who witnessed these practices firsthand during his years at the survey firm MTSL Surveys and later as a quality controller at Quality Studio. "We wanted to do something about this. It has been a year of trial and error—testing, talking to people—but we see that we have already made some progress."
SAFTA's team
"The exporters we have worked with are satisfied, which shows us that this concept is the right one. They are also our best advocates in attracting potential new partners. However, we still find that it takes a lot of effort and persuasion to get exporters to adopt a different system," Jeroen continues. "For example, if I say that I can secure a yield of €30,000 per container for them, and someone else offers €50,000 per container, many will quickly choose the €50,000. But they don't realize that they will have to pay various costs out of that amount, leaving them with only €25,000 when they expected €50,000. That's when they understand our approach. We guarantee a minimum margin on their costs."
"This is the essence of fair trade, which is what we want to promote. If there is a profit, we share it with the exporter. If the market crashes, we still ensure they receive their guaranteed minimum margin. Recently, one exporter lost his entire shipment in transit, but we still paid him the cost price. It's not the exporter's fault if something goes wrong while his goods are in transit for two months with a shipping company. That's what our insurance covers—it becomes our problem to recover the money, but the exporter gets paid. That's the core of our mission. Exporters should not suffer for issues beyond their control. This principle applies to transportation, but also to every other part of the supply chain."
At the same time, Jeroen emphasizes that exporters also have responsibilities. "We want a fair, transparent, and equal supply chain, but that also means the quality of the goods must be top-notch. We ensure this as well. If an exporter doesn't meet the quality standards, they will struggle with us. These agreements are clear, but we also help them improve. We see that this approach is being well received, particularly by African exporters. South American exporters have been in the market longer and often still rely on the old system, making the transition slower. But in Africa, we are already operating in several markets. Additionally, in recent weeks, we have flown in some products from Asia to market here. Some exporters still need help with certification, and we assist them with that as well. Our goal is to equip these companies to establish themselves in the European market."
Change of mindset
It is a noble mission, but not always easy to implement. "No, we have certainly noticed that," Michiel adds. "Over the past year, we have learned a lot about how to communicate our message. First, it's about how we present our story to potential partners. It requires a shift in mentality. Through many conversations at trade fairs, we realized that the market often creates unrealistic expectations. People focus on these expectations rather than the reality. In this sense, we are fighting against market perceptions. Different continents have different perspectives, so we need to tailor our message for South America, Africa, and Asia, as each faces different challenges. Our core message remains the same, but we have to adjust it to fit the exporter's viewpoint."
"Secondly, we learned that the market is very receptive to information. That's why we started email campaigns to continuously educate people and provide them with resources. The more knowledge they have about the market, the better they understand that they don't have to settle for minimal prices—they can earn a fair income," Michiel continues. "Finally, exporters often purchase their goods from third parties. We realized that our message needs to extend beyond exporters to growers as well. We need to engage the first step in the supply chain. Ultimately, our goal is stability throughout the chain. Initially, we thought this would happen naturally, but we realized we had to take proactive steps. We needed to establish the cost structures of avocados and other products to determine exactly what each link in the chain should earn. Through these three areas, we refined our communication and successfully gained exporter support."
Giving avocado a face
For 2025, the team hopes to take further significant steps. "I think we are establishing our place in the market. We are working with some major companies to help them source products they are unfamiliar with," Jeroen explains. "They see that we have the necessary logistics partners to arrange groupage shipments with five pallets of one product and seven of another. We provide a service they might not want to handle themselves. Of course, we don't take on everything—we are selective because if we do something, we want to do it well. Our goal remains to help small and medium-sized exporters bring their products to the European market, or occasionally to other markets. But we have to stay focused."
SAFTA is also expanding its reach. "Where we initially had consultants only in Chile, we now have representatives in Colombia, Peru, and African countries like Kenya and Tanzania, all closely connected to the local markets. In Belgium, we have also welcomed Nicolai Fruit as a preferred partner. We are working towards building partnerships between our member exporters and European companies that share our vision of transparency and fair treatment for exporters. Ultimately, our goal is to establish a preferred partner in every country."
Looking ahead, the team remains confident. "At the end of the day, market fluctuations don't matter as much—we are creating our own space where we aim to drive change. And from that foundation, we will continue building. I believe 2025 will be the year we take the first major step towards broader impact. We are not the biggest, nor do we need to be, but I believe we can make a real difference. Our people know the regions, the growers, and their families. They are part of the community. That's how we want to give a face to the avocados and mangoes on supermarket shelves."
For more information:
SAFTA
11 Noordkaai
2170, Antwerpen, Belgium
Tel: +32 477 687 639
[email protected]
www.safta.trading