By: Staff Writer
December 26, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lankan food and beverage (F&B) exporters made significant strides in accessing the European Union (EU) market through their participation in SIAL Paris 2024, a premier global F&B exhibition held from October 19 to 23 in France.
A key focus of Sri Lanka’s involvement, organized by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) in collaboration with the Sri Lankan Embassy in France, was promoting EU PGI-certified Ceylon Cinnamon products.
With financial support from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a dedicated promotional area was set up to highlight the premium cinnamon offerings of 10 Sri Lankan companies, including Samagi Spice Exports Ltd., Pasanka Ltd., and Jaith Ceylon Cinnamon Ltd. This initiative was aimed at boosting Ceylon Cinnamon’s visibility and enabling its penetration into the lucrative EU market.
To enhance exposure, the Embassy produced a promotional video featuring French Chef Dominique Pambrun, showcasing the culinary versatility of Ceylon Cinnamon to European audiences. A pre-event social media campaign in French and English further created awareness among potential EU buyers.
The Embassy also facilitated business-to-business (B2B) meetings and invited top European importers, such as Carrefour, to visit the Sri Lanka pavilion. In addition, the EDB shared importer contact details with participating companies beforehand, enabling them to arrange meetings and negotiations effectively.
By the end of the exhibition, Sri Lankan firms had secured $2.8 million in confirmed orders from EU and other buyers. Moreover, negotiations for an additional $3.6 million in potential business were ongoing for spices, coconut products, confectionery, and processed foods.
Sri Lanka’s proactive efforts at SIAL Paris reflect a strong commitment to expanding its F&B exports into the EU, leveraging the event’s global platform to establish long-term commercial partnerships and enhance the country’s presence in international markets.
The Sri Lankan Embassy in France, led by Sri Lankan Ambassador Manisha Gunasekera, provided comprehensive support to the EDB in organising Sri Lanka’s participation at the event. The Embassy connected several leading buyers with the Sri Lankan companies, including the Carrefour supermarket chain in France.
The Ambassador visited the Sri Lanka pavilions and had discussions with the Sri Lankan companies during the trade fair.
Prior to the exhibition, the EDB, with the assistance of the Sri Lankan Embassy, shared the contact details of potential importers for all product sectors displayed by Sri Lankan companies, enabling the participant firms to arrange business meetings.
Further, the Sri Lanka Mission in France invited all potential importers to visit the Sri Lanka pavilion and arranged B2B meetings with potential importers at the pavilion.
The Embassy also organised a successful social media campaign in the French and English languages for a period of more than five weeks.
To give more visibility and to attract potential commercial partners to the Sri Lanka pavilion in two locations, the EDB organised a webinar series before the exhibition for the individual participants/companies highlighted by SIAL Paris.
