Six Pakistani companies to attend Malaysian food fair

ISLAMABAD: Six leading Pakistani companies are set to showcase their products at the 12th Malaysian International Food and Beverage Trade Fair 2011 which opens in the Malaysian capital next week.

The three-day event starting on July 13, 2011 at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur will bring together the movers and shakers of a multi-billion dollar industry to facilitate global networking and create opportunities in the food and beverage industry, says a message received here on Thursday.

The fair will boast of 500 booths featuring the latest and innovative products and services in the industry from over 25 countries.

Pakistani companies attending the trade fair this year are Fauji Cereals, Mehran Spice and Food Industries, Imtiaz Enterprises, Maizona (Pvt) Limited, Al-Hamza Trading and Shipbreaking Company and Imran Qasim Trading Est.

The event which drew a record 20,228 professional, trade and business visitors from 48 countries last year,is likely to serve as an ideal occasion to enhance Pak-Malaysia bilateral trade relations and to present and promote high-quality Pakistani agro-food products to the target audience in highly potential Malaysian market.

The event offers the participating Pakistan exporters a rare advantage to establish personal contacts with a large number of potential purchasers gathered at one place and use the experience to increase their trading portfolio by foreign canvassing.

Pakistani exhibitors are also expected to use the occasion to study market trends and align their products to the market standards based on consumers' concerns for health, food safety and environmental sustainability.

The fair will motivate the Pakistani companies not only to introduce new products but also observe what the world has to offer in a sector, in one single place and in a short space of time.

The event is also likely to be used by participating companies to communicate with their current and prospective clients, communicate with local partners, validate their competence, and assess their degree of interest.

This will help them meet and select local partners, including agents, license holders, distributors and potential partners, to form a strong distribution network.

Pakistani products such as rice, spices, pickles, kheer, vermicellies, fried onion, cooking pastes, teas, preserves (murabas), wheat, mango, onion, potato, cereals, porridge, desserts (custard powder, jelly quick set, kheer mix, firni khas), corn flour, rice flour, pearl barley, laundry kulf, ice cream powder are in great demand in Malaysia and many of these products will be display on the Pakistani booth in the trade fair.

It may added that the Malaysian Food and Beverage market holds out immense potential given its swift growth, high quality demand and global acknowledgement.

Since Pakistan has a strong, premier quality and well established agro food sector with products having extraordinary features of aroma, sweetness and nutritional significance, its participation in MIFB 2011 is likely to serve as a source of mutual opportunities for both Pakistani as well as Malaysian business community.

It may be pertinent to mention that in the year 2009-10 Pakistan has exported worldwide US$ 2.20 billion worth of rice and US$ 360 million worth of fruits & vegetable, US$ 227 million worth of fish & fish preparations, US$ 97 million worth of meat & meat preparation and US$ 41 million worth of spices, which depict the strength of Pakistan's agro food sector to cater the Malaysian market in an efficient and proactive way.

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011