July 11, 2007

ACDI/VOCA Helps Georgians and Lebanese Exhibit at Fancy Foods Show

Two ACDI/VOCA projects were represented at the 53rd Annual Summer Fancy Foods Show, one of the world's largest and most prestigious food exhibitions. Twenty-one firms from Georgia and eight from Lebanon, all the beneficiaries of ACDI/VOCA marketing assistance, eagerly matched their goods with the world’s best at the July 8-10 show at the Javits Center in New York.

The show, which drew approximately 30,000 consumers, restaurateurs, buyers and food writers, featured 2,400 companies showing their wares and closing business deals.

"Hospitality"

Georgian companies received financing and other support to attend the show from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Georgian Ministry of Agriculture through USAID's AgVANTAGE project. AgVANTAGE, a $23 million project implemented by ACDI/VOCA, has facilitated over $21 million in Georgian export sales, mostly to European markets, since 2003.

AgVANTAGE helped develop a comprehensive "Taste of Georgia" brand that encompasses such Georgian products as wine, water, hazelnuts, bay laurel oil, jams, sauces and spices, and provides information about the country, its history and culture. Georgians have a rich culinary tradition and are famous hosts. As John Steinbeck once wrote: “If one tried to describe Georgia using one single word, the right word would definitely be 'hospitality'."

In today's world of food marketing, which is obsessed with what's new, Georgian products have an opening. The strong winemaking tradition goes back almost 7,000 years, and many of the local grape varieties are unique to Georgia. Certain spices and sauces can brace a tired palate.

Significant efforts have been made to promote Georgian products for the U.S. market, owing in large part to the embargo imposed on Georgian products in 2006 by Russia. ACDI/VOCA's Gevorg Adamyan has said, "The Fancy Food Show is a chance for Georgian food to shine. The country where the very word for wine may have its origins offers plenty for even the most demanding food connoisseurs."

At the show, AgVANTAGE marketing consultants drew a lot of attention from the food press. Writers from Food & Wine Magazine, Gourmet News and the New York Times interviewed the Georgian representatives and project staff. Read the July 11 article by Florence Fabricant in the New York Times.

Lazeez Means "Very Delicious"

In spite of Lebanon’s tortured politics, time-honored food cultivation and preparation practices go on. In fact recent economic disruption makes export success even more important. Lebanon's goat and sheep cheeses, fruits, nuts and confections stand up to the competition, and products such as powdered hummus mix and pomegranate concentrate appeal to modern consumers.

ACDI/VOCA's ASAIL project in Lebanon is a two-year $6.9 million USAID-funded value chain project that helps develop niche foodstuffs and dairy products. By increasing the efficiency of input, production, processing and marketing businesses and by strengthening market linkages, ASAIL is raising the income and profitability of small- and medium-scale enterprises.

For the Fancy Food Show ASAIL helped Lebanese client co-ops and small enterprises obtain FDA registration as well as labels, brochures, business cards, websites, e-mail accounts and fax capability. The project also gave a workshop on what to expect at the show and on making a good presentation. Products offered were geared especially to Lebanon's diasporic markets. While in New York, the eager-to-learn participants toured Whole Foods, Dean and DeLuca and other supermarkets.

The show was a step toward helping Lebanon's resilient people return the country to its place as a significant player in global markets. Participants, already proud of their products, have a newfound awareness of the need for export quality.

But for them more is at stake. As Dunia Khoury, president of the Women's Association of Deir el-Ahmar, said, "When we support the people and their traditional, hand-made products, we are countering the trend toward processed commercial food and we are keeping people on the land and protecting the environment."