FIAL Main - Technical Insights #health

Allergen Sensitive and Gluten Free Foods

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 08:44:13 +1000

SalDoce Fine Foods

Supported by FIAL, SalDoce Fine Foods are focussing their efforts on allergen sensitive individuals by expanding their exporting portfolio and generating connections all around the world.

Challenge

Cristina and Martin Talacko founded SalDoce Fine Foods in 2000, beginning their journey manufacturing and selling savoury gluten-free cheese puffs to fulfil a market gap surrounding gluten allergies. The company focused on generating brand awareness to sustain long-term growth. Driven by industry demand, SalDoce Fine Foods quickly evolved, producing a range of allergen sensitive baking mixes under the YesYouCan brand. These allergen sensitive baking mixes, such as dairy-free and egg-free, began drawing attention from international markets. Business goals swiftly changed from awareness to increasing exporting capabilities.

Exporting into new markets is incredibly costly from the point of meeting, presenting products and maintaining connections. SalDoce Fine Foods wanted to source new customers and export opportunities in international markets whilst maintaining its current network.

Solution

SalDoce Fine Foods came across the Food and Agribusiness Growth Centre, trading as FIAL, at an international food show in Hong Kong in 2015. Managing Director, Martin Talacko, recognised FIAL’s stand presence in the show and the associated elevated exposure participating businesses experienced. Following this, SalDoce Fine Foods decided to take the next step and successfully applied to showcase their product offerings as part of a FIAL stand at multiple international trade shows including Gulfood in the Middle East, Food Hotel Asia in Singapore, and Food Hotel China. Trade Shows provide businesses with logistical and financial support to showcase their products in international markets. “FIAL provides a great platform to participate in trade shows. Normally they aren’t affordable, so attending with FIAL not only makes it more affordable, but it generates a better presence from an Australian perspective than if you were at a stand by yourself,” said Martin.

SalDoce Fine Foods also participated in two FIAL-led Virtual Meet the Buyer events with interested prospective buyers from China and the Gulf region. The Virtual Meet the Buyer events provide export-ready Australian food and agribusinesses with the opportunity to secure a one-to-one virtual meeting with interested buyers in key markets around the globe.

Outcome

SalDoce Fine Foods is now exporting to 20 countries, receiving the NSW Export Award in 2016 and 2018 for its efforts. The company is observing steady growth, even in the face of logistical challenges COVID-19 has brought to the industry.

Participating in trade shows has given SalDoce Fine Foods an avenue to show its continual commitment to regions and reach new customers and long-term exporting partners. Several new exporting deals were secured across all six events, expanding SalDoce Fine Foods exporting portfolio.

Virtual Meet the Buyer events, run by FIAL, gave SalDoce a great avenue to meet new potential customers and discuss its products. “We secured a new exporting deal with an online retailer in the Gulf event and have successfully started doing business,” said Martin Talacko. “FIAL’s Virtual Meet the Buyer events allowed us to meet new customers, reconnect with existing customers and introduce our brand and product range to new markets cost-effectively.”

SalDoce Fine Foods is continually reaching new customers, innovating products and generating a profitable income. The company is continuously working on securing new online international export opportunities and distributors to expand its reach.

Case study developed by Amber Keep - Food & Agribusiness and Marketing Student at the University of Sydney

www.yesyoucan.net.au

Value-added Milk Products

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 10:55:17 +1000

Australia's First Choice

Australia’s First Choice is generating meaningful international connections and expanding their export portfolio with the help of FIAL’s Virtual Meet the Buyer events.

Challenge

Australia’s First Choice, branded as Ozi Choice, was established in 2014 in response to China’s high demand for Australian dairy products. Specialising in delicious and nutritious high-quality Australian made milk powder, milk bites and long-life UHT milk that is easy to integrate into daily life, the company’s philosophy – health is wealth – has underpinned business goals and actions.

Since its establishment, the company has gone from strength to strength, entering the competitive Chinese market space within the first few years of operation. After operating for five years, the company’s goals shifted from establishing a brand in China to increasing the product range and export portfolio. Opening a manufacturing facility in Victoria was also on the horizon to centralise operations within the business. In 2020, the turbulent nature of COVID-19 made logistics and interacting with international buyers incredibly challenging. FIAL’s Virtual Meet the Buyer events ‘sparked their interest’ due to travel restrictions and an inability to network and reach international markets.

Solution

Developed by the Food and Agribusiness Growth Centre, trading as FIAL, the Virtual Meet the Buyer events provide export-ready Australian food and agribusinesses with the opportunity to secure a one-to-one virtual meeting with interested buyers in key markets around the globe. Since establishment, Australia’s First Choice was subscribed to the FIAL e-newsletter, and when the Virtual Meet the Buyer events were advertised the company could not pass up the chance of reaching new international markets and buyers.

Australia’s First Choice presented their product offerings in three of FIAL’s events. At each event, they were sought out by five to six buyers from Jiangsu Province China, Vietnam and Asia. Australia’s First Choice Manager, Damian Gauci, explained the Virtual Meet the Buyer events as an invaluable way to “gain knowledge and networking opportunities in new markets without the need for travel”.

Outcome

Australia’s First Choice unlocked many growth opportunities through FIAL’s Virtual Meet the Buyer events. In Vietnam and China, the company secured several new exporting deals, which increased the company’s market knowledge, export portfolio and exposure to new clients and customers. These events also enabled Australia’s First Choice to continue expanding their exporting portfolio and prospective customer base by one to two countries per year.

Manager, Damian Gauci, highly recommends FIAL’s Virtual Meet the Buyer events as they were “a positive experience, which was useful to gain knowledge about new markets, access them and communicate with potential new clients”. Developing new customers and export opportunities is an ongoing business challenge. Australia’s First Choice said the Virtual Meet the Buyer events helped them overcome this business challenge.

Case study developed by Amber Keep - Food & Agribusiness and Marketing Student at the University of Sydney

Based on research by FIAL in Capturing the Prize, 19 growth opportunities for the Food and Agribusiness sector have been identified with the potential to grow the sector's annual value-addition capability from its current $61 billion per annum to over $200 billion per annum by 2030, creating an additional 300,000 jobs for the economy.

Capitalising on export connections

Wed, 18 Aug 2021 11:31:16 +1000

Slim Secrets

Getting a foot in the door is undoubtably the first and most important step to introducing your products into overseas markets. Slim Secret’s Jamie Thurin discusses how important those initial conversations with overseas buyers are and how FIAL can help your business shape up and set them up.

Challenge

Established in 2005, when the now flourishing health and wellness snack sector was just emerging in the Australian market, Slim Secrets has managed to remain successful and relevant to consumers both here and overseas. With the healthy snack alternatives, including bars, puddings and shakes having been present in Australian supermarket giants Woolworths and Coles for over a decade, the 100% Australian owned and operated company has further expanded over time, now available in a range of speciality retail suppliers, from chemists to airport stores.

Having experienced significant successes in domestic market, Slim Secrets began to grow their overseas presence five years ago. The major challenge in this process was creating connections and the developing relations with new buyers, supplier and distributors, with the brand lacking the capacity to find and begin these conversations. International Sales Director, Jamie Thurin emphasised the importance of identifying connections, saying that “having the opportunity for conversations is the critical starting point, and one that you can’t get anywhere without”.

Solution

Despite working through these challenges over the past five years and successfully expanding into markets including Japan, Singapore, the Middle East, Korea and New Zealand, Slim Secrets are always looking for new suppliers and markets. With experience in export procedures and protocols, identifying and connecting with the right person with potential buyers, suppliers and distributors in new markets is an ongoing a major challenge for the business.

Previously attending trade shows with the Food and Agribusiness Growth Centre, trading as FIAL, and more recently through involvement in the Virtual Meet the Buyer events, this challenge has been all but eliminated. Virtual Meet the Buyer events set up meetings between overseas buyers and Australian export-ready businesses such as Slim Secrets, allowing them to get on with the important task of doing business. Described by Slim Secret’s Jamie Thurin as “pivotal and instrumental in helping to overcome these obstacles and begin to establish these ever-important relationships”.

Outcome

By participating in Trade Shows and Virtual Meet the Buyer events over the years, Slim Secrets has established contact with many overseas suppliers that would not have been possible without the extensive network of industry contacts provided by FIAL. With the suspension of overseas travel for most of 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19, FIAL addressed this increased business need by transferring its existing Meet the Buyer program, to an online platform. This has allowed business to grow and deals to continue despite travel restrictions. And while they “don’t always come away with partner, distributor or supplier” in the short term, the process has acted as a catalyst for the formation of invaluable relationships with the potential for fresh opportunities as the brand evolves and consumer markets develop over time.

And with new connections made at Virtual Meet the Buyer events resulting in samples being sent as far afield as Asian petrol station chains, there’s no telling where Slim Secrets will be expanding to next.

Case study developed by Lucy Hickman - Science and Food & Agribusiness Student at the University of Sydney