A NORTH West producer is making inroads in the untapped Middle Eastern market, with export negotiations under way.
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Lively Linseed Products is in talks with a supermarket chain in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to stock its health food products, produced at Jacqui and Chris Donoghue’s Mullaley property, “Plain Camp”.
The business already exports its products to China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.
But thanks to a recent trade commission in Sydney and exhibiting at a food show in Dubai, the business is looking to expand its export market to the UAE.
Mrs Donoghue believes there’s a growing demand for Australian produce overseas, particularly in the UAE, because of the country’s clean-green image.
“They like Australian products, they find it’s ethically-sound, the ethically-produced standards here,” Mrs Donoghue said.
“The UAE imports $45 billion worth of food, and they expect that to grow.
“Australia supplies 10 per cent of that. By 2020, they’re expecting that the food import industry will grow to $60 billion.”
Lively Linseed Products are becoming increasingly popular across the Asian and Middle Eastern markets due to their high omega-3 qualities.
“The areas of the world that we target the population is mostly a plant-based market,” Mrs Donoghue said.
“And there are opportunities in the UAE for our meat also. Australia is the leading meat importers to the UAE.”
Mrs Donoghue was invited by the Trade Commissioner to the UAE to attend a recent conference in Sydney, which focussed on empowering trade between the two nations.
During the conference, of which she was only one of five women, she met with prospective buyers, including supermarket owners.
“It was all to do with the future trends in halal as well,” she said.
Lively Linseeds also exhibited its products in Dubai earlier this year, which secured its “first lead into the market”.
“It’s the biggest food expo in the world and we’ll go again next year,” Mrs Donoghue said.
“To allow you to speak to buyers from all over the world in one place is a unique opportunity.”
Mrs Donoghue believes more North West producers should look to export products as a means of “fortifying yourself against a downturn in the Australian economy”.
Liverpool Plains ‘has so much to offer’
THE Liverpool Plains could become an exporting hot spot if producers rally together to showcase the region to the world.
Mullaley-based business, Lively Linseed Products, is in negotiations to export its health food products to the Middle East. Owner Jacqui Donoghue is calling on other local producers to investigate exporting to the country, which currently imports $45 billion worth of food.
“It’d be good to try and host some buyers and trade commissioners from the UAE to the Liverpool Plains to see what we’ve got to offer,” Mrs Donoghue said.
“Once you get business in the region, you tend to get more. The Liverpool Plains has so much to offer. They like our clean-green practices and our political neutrality has buyers from all those countries interested.
“I’d just love it if more Australians could see the opportunities.
“There’s some extreme wealth in the UAE and that end of the market is who we’re trying to target because they can afford the product, afford the freight. Freight is the biggest cost out here.”