Anda di halaman 1dari 3

Country file

Brazil chases own export


record
If the 2004 export forecast of US$25 million for cut
flowers and plants comes true for Brazil and it
certainly looks promising - it will be the third successive
year that this budding export sector has broken its
record level.
By Mauricio C. Mathias

t the end of July, the


Brazilian export total
already reached US$14.4
million, up 30% from the
same period in 2003. Market
share of the worlds plant and
flower business is 0.22%, however, plans are to reach up to
1.5%. Granted that the total
numbers are still representative
of a budding industry in the
world arena, it still shows fast
growth since the US$12.2 million yearly average between
1992 and 2000 (Figure 1). This

is to a large extent the result of


an international marketing
campaign started with the
inception of the FloraBrasilis
programme, a partnership
between Ibraflor and APEX, a
federal agency for export promotion. This programme initially focused on assessing
Brazils export potential, chain
diagnosis, attendance at international fairs and the fostering
of an exporting culture.
A further phase has recently
been completed, which has

Figure 1. Total flower and plant exports 1996 to 2004. (The


realised amount for 2004 refers to end of July totals)
25

Projection
Realised

Million US$ FOB

20

15

10

'96

'97

'98

'99

'00

'01

'02

'03

'04

Source: Hrtica Consultoria e Treinamento from the Ministry of Development,


Industry and Foreign Trade, Foreign Trade Secretary (ALICE system).

FlowerTECH 2004, vol. 7/no. 7

included an achievement evaluation and the presentation of


a strategic plan. The implementation of the plan will
depend on an upcoming partnership renewal, but the market players are now aware of
the possibilities. With a large
surface area, and a range of climate conditions, Brazil has
distinct micro regions that can
capitalise on growing crops to
cater for different international
markets all year round.

Optimism realistic
Can annual 30% increases in
exports be maintained? One
expert, Hlio Junqueira, says
yes and explained why. He
owns Hrtica, a consulting
company, and has acted as
executive-director at
FloraBrasilis. The word is out
that Brazil has woken up to its
exporting potential and even at
local business fairs we see
more and more international
buyers. After all, this is a sector
driven by novelties and traders
are always hungry for new
products. When you see our
plant export listing, you realise
that it is based on a wide range
of items and destinations
(Table 1). Diversity is the basis
of sustainability. However, we
are not a main flower exporting country, by any means. Not
yet! Marketing has to continue
since Brazil is not on the buyers route for most items.
Nevertheless, for certain items,
e.g. bulbs sent to the
Netherlands and cuttings
exported to Japan, Brazil
already enjoys a very high

quality reputation.
He quotes other reasons for
optimism, We are breaking
into new markets, e.g.
Germany. Also there are new
products; cut flower exports
have increased so much that
they are nearly equivalent to
the value of bulbs, which traditionally hold second position
behind seedlings. Plus, there is
the increased number of growers to support the export
expansion, together with higher volumes from traditional
exporters.

Issues still to solve


The larger export volumes
make logistics more of an
issue, especially in a country
the size of Brazil. Among the
factors threatening the growth
success are:
Infrastructure; the cold storage facilities at the main
exporting airport, Guarulhos
(outside So Paulo) are not
only for flowers, and sometimes there is not enough
space.
Air freight; there are not
enough regular air cargo routes
scheduled, so on occasion passenger flights have to be used.
Bureaucracy; new laws on
cultivar protection and phytosanitary regulations on
imported plant material take a
while to be implemented.
These challenges are being
tackled by four main workgroups composed of Ibraflor
and the Flower Sector
Chamber, which unites the
various flower production
chains. They proactively sug-

www.HortiWorld.nl

Country file
Table 1. Bouquet fresh cut flower exports
by country of destination.
Destination

gest legislation updates to


increase the countrys competitive edge in the world market,
and continually bring sector
issues to the authorities attention. This is essential for continued growth since, unlike
other traditional flower-exporting countries, the flower sector
does not contribute substantially to the national economy.

Product selection
The broad product range was
mentioned by Hlio Junqueira
and is clearly an important
aspect for the export increase.
Exports rely on both temperate
plants, e.g. roses, gerberas,
lilies, gladioli (flower and
bulbs), lisianthus, chrysanthemum cuttings, as well as tropical plants. In this manner, the
country is not competing
directly on a one-product-only
basis with other production
regions. For example, it is well
known that Brazil does not
have the same altitude climate
to compete in rose head size
with Colombia and Ecuador,
and therefore, when companies decide to grow roses they
choose appropriate varieties.
As the demand for medium
size roses recently increased in
the US market, so did the
Brazilian presence; from
January to July fresh cut bouquet flower exports to the US
increased 130% (in $) over the
same period in 2003. Rose
popularity provides a niche for
all types. And while Brazil
imports large-size roses from
Colombia, it actually sends
propagation material now to

www.HortiWorld.nl

the Colombian growers.


As for tropical plants, e.g.
anthuriums, orchids, there is
some overlap with plants
exported by Central-American
countries. However, Brazil has
not become involved in the
same way as some of these
countries with the American
and Dutch enterprises, which
are growing on demand for
their home markets. Brazils
renowned biodiversity will
have to be explored to offer
unique varieties. Tropical
plants such as heliconias, ornamental ananas, native orchids,
calatheas, costus and others are
already creating interest in the
European market. Exports
from north-east Brazil to
Portugal and other countries
may increase further as other
states in this region have
already started to follow
Cears example in organising
their production chain.
The main export segment is
actually represented by
seedlings, representing 51% of
the export value in 2003. This
is mostly due to stable jointventures formed in the early
1980s between growers from
the Holambra region and
European breeders. The majority propagate chrysanthemums,
which are exported to Europe
as cuttings. At least one Italian
company also exports
seedlings from southern Brazil.
When the value of the bulb
exports is added to the
seedlings, 75% of the plant
export value is shown not to
be from cut flowers.

USA
The Netherlands
Portugal
Italy
United Kingdom
Canada
6 other countries*
TOTAL

Exports
Jan to July
2003 (US$)
757,307
95,153
49,038
526
45,809
947,833

Exports
Jan to July
2004 (US$)
1,742,208
672,346
94,622
38,336
24,570
21,207
35,013
2,628,302

Percentage
in total (%)
66.29
25.58
3.60
1.46
0.93
0.81
1.33
100

* Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Switzerland, Spain and Germany


Source: Hrtica Consultoria e Treinamento from the Ministry of Development, Industry and
Foreign Trade, Foreign Trade Secretary (ALICE system).

Supply challenge
Holambra, a town in the state
of So Paulo, where 75% of
the exports originate, has
around 300 growers, mostly
Dutch descendants who sell
their crops at the local auction
(Veiling Holambra). A recent
auction policy to attract producers from other regions is

aiming to increase the sectors


synergy and organise suppliers
to physically meet market
demand. The Veilings new
export department is also likely to make a difference to the
developments, located at the
centre of the action. Together
with another local coop,
Coperflora, they have wide-

Events stimulate local interest


Three major events take place during September weekends and holidays
around So Paulo, Brazils largest city. The number of visitors grows
steadily, a sign of increasing interest in house plants and flowers. All
events sell plants from local growers directly to the public; the strategy
seems to be working judging from the number of excursion buses coming
from different states.
Atibaias Strawberry and Flower Festival takes place since 1980 and it has
displayed flowers and fruit to 120 thousand people this year. The 1,000
m2 main hall shows ikebana and different types of flower and fruit
arrangements. There are around 450 growers, planting approx. 240 ha
of flowers in the region.
Aflord is the newest of the flower festivals in its thirteenth year. A flower
growers association organises the event, which gathered 30 thousand
people in Aruj to see predominantly orchids from 70 growers situated
in nearby towns.
Expoflora is the largest event, located in Holambra. The Dutch influence
is visible in local architecture as well as in the typical music and dance
presented. Around 150 plant varieties from almost 300 growers are for
sale at a garden center, attracting around 300,000 people. The flower
cooperative and festival are reputedly the largest of their kind in Latin
America.

FlowerTECH 2004, vol. 7/no. 7

Country file

ranging experience in the international market.


In the other states particularly there will be openings for
trading companies to develop
the growing environments,
characterised by many small
growers, into business opportunities with a few international buyers. Whether the opportunities will be initiated by
Brazilians, foreign trading
companies, or joint-ventures
remains to be seen.

FlowerTECH 2004, vol. 7/no. 7

Niche business
Out of the eleven destinations
buying the most Brazilian
flowers this year, six were new
clients, which indicates the
growing interest. In fact, the
market appears to be ready for
air freight companies to further invest in cargo space; the
freight prices can represent up
to 50% of the final price once
the flowers reach the European
market place.
Besides the general increase
in export, another positive
trend for the flower sector has

been the gradual decline in


imported material. Currently,
Brazil imports 22% of the
value exported, which is below
the 30% historical average.
Such a decline is a consequence of the larger export
share now occupied by fresh
cut flowers, which are less
dependent on imported material. Fresh cut flowers are the
segment with the most potential for export growth and the
one that allows more value to
be added to the final product.
There is also reason for opti-

mism in one of the smallest


export segments, but one that
is believed to be just beginning
to show its potential, dried
leaves and branches. Sales to
both the EU and the USA have
increased in the first semester
of 2003. Another niche market, litchen and moss for decoration has doubled its sales,
almost all of it come from the
state of Par.
The author can be contacted at mauriciomathias@hotmail.com

www.HortiWorld.nl

Anda mungkin juga menyukai