by Lorena P. Lobarbio | DTI-Export Marketing Bureau
The Department of Trade and Industry-Export Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB), Philippine Trade and Investment Center-Osaka (PTIC-Osaka), Foreign Trade Service Corps (FTSC), and Board of Investments (BOI), conducted a Webinar and Online Business to Business (B2B) Matching (B2B) activity with host, International Business Promotion Center-Osaka (IBPC Osaka), last 29 October 2020 via the Zoom platform.
The activity was organized and led by Commercial Attache Emmanuel Ang of PTIC Osaka who stated, “What we want to do is match Philippine food companies with Japanese partners who in one way or another can help the Philippine company develop new products or expand capabilities, be it in terms of exporting, investing in new equipment or technologies, franchising…”
DTI Undersecretary Abdulgani M. Macatoman welcomed the participants and noted that companies are now adapting to the new normal by participating to DTI-organized B2B meetings online.
“Many Philippine companies are now adapting to the new normal of executing B2B meetings through various online platforms in order to be able to continue implementing their export strategies and serve their potential and existing clients worldwide even in this time of pandemic,” Macatoman said.
Mr. Roberto C. Amores, Director of Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Agriculture Committee and President of Philippine Food Processors and Exporters Inc. (PHILFOODEX), discussed about the challenges and opportunities for the Philippine Food Industry.
He said that our country’s goal is “To have a food secure and resilient Philippine agriculture industry with prosperous farmers and fisherfolks”. He discussed the main agricultural products that Japan can import from the Philippines and encouraged the Japanese participants to partner and invest in growth of the Philippine agricultural industry.
The webinar also featured Mr. Shuichiro Takebayashi of Eco Solutions Business Unit, Fuji Keizai Management Co., Ltd. as a speaker on the “Latest Trends in Food-processing Technology in Japan.
After the webinar, an online B2B event was held with 18 Philippine exporters matched with 18 Japanese companies. Altogether, 59 business matching meetings were concluded, spanning a wide range of products such as fruits, coconut products, rice, sugar, calamansi extract, nuts, frozen fruit puree, natural product ingredients and components, seaweed, carrageenan, frozen vegetables, and marine products. As an offshoot of the event, additional follow-through meetings and discussions were organized for the participants in the following weeks.
Japan ranked 1st among the Philippines’ top food export markets with total imports from the Philippines of US$1.04 B, representing 21.36% share of our country’s total food exports of US$4.88 B in 2019. ♦
Date of release: 01 December 2020