Romanian angus beef, fresh milk from Poland and organic apples from Italy. Singaporeans, known for their love for good food, may soon find these together with other quality European food and beverage products at a store near them.
Discussions on ways to make this happen in Singapore will feature prominently from November 5 to 7. That’s when a high-level visit from the European Union (EU) food and beverage sector arrives in the city-state. The visit is part of a key regional promotion to four South-east Asian cities to explore market opportunities. Apart from Singapore, other stops include: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Jakarta.
The delegation to Singapore includes 45 top business representatives from 37 EU F&B companies and aims to promote safe, quality and nutritious European food and beverage (F&B) products to buyers and importers in Singapore.
F&B companies and associations on this visit are from various EU Member States including Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain and the UK. They will be promoting a wide variety of agricultural and F&B products from fruits and vegetables to fresh meat, poultry, processed foods, dairy products and wine & spirits.
The delegation will visit several local retail stores such as NTUC FairPrice, la Petite Boutique, Le Quartier, Giant, Pasarbella, and Sheng Siong to gain insights into Singapore’s F&B industry.
To further understand the local market, the delegation will also participate in a business seminar, which focuses on market access, local rules and regulations. In addition, there will be a food tasting session highlighting the sheer diversity and range of European food and beverage products. Delegates, ambassadors, trade or agri counsellors of EU Member States’ in Singapore, local buyers and other stakeholders will also get to interact and network during a lunch session.
Another highlight of the high-level mission will be a B2B matchmaking event where EU producers will get to meet Singaporean importers, distributors and retailers to discuss opportunities for future collaboration.
Dr Michael Pulch, the EU Ambassador to Singapore calls this “a step forward,” in deepening EU-Singapore cooperation in the booming food and beverage sector. “Singapore serves as an important hub for European food and beverage exports to the broader South-east Asian region.”
Singapore is already the EU’s 17th largest global trading partner (in terms of goods) and the largest among ASEAN countries. In 2015, total EU-Singapore trade in goods grew by 7.7% in 2015 reaching 48.6 billion Euro while trade in services grew by 15.4% amounting to 36.1 billion Euro. Singapore is also a major destination for European investments in Asia, as well as Asia’s second largest investor in the EU. In 2014, the EU was ASEAN’s largest investor with 184 billion Euro in FDI stocks held in the region at year-end, with Singapore accounting for 56% of EU FDI.
Additionally, more than 10,000 EU companies are established in Singapore and use the country as a hub to serve the Pacific Rim.
” Our strong performance has enabled the EU to confirm its position as one of Singapore’s most important trade partners and the city-state’s foremost investor,” says Dr Pulch.