With a loan of $10 million from the World Bank. Grupo Mercon will provide technical assistance and grant funding to coffee producers.
CISA Exportadora del Grupo Mercon and Corporación Financiera Internacional, a member of the World Bank signed a loan agreement for $10 million in support of coffee growing in Nicaragua.
The Director of Agribusiness Manufacturing and Services for Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa of the IFC, Oscar Chemerinsk indicated in an article in Estrategiaynegocios.net that "the investment will benefit coffee farmers, supporting the development of critical aspects of the distribution chain in coffee communities throughout the country. "
Cucumber, zucchini and lemons have been grown inside transparent molds forming shapes such as hearts or stars.
From an article by the Costa Rican Trade Promotion Office (PROCOMER):
The Spanish company Zayintec displayed cucumbers in the form of hearts and stars during a tasting, at the stand of the Diputación Provincial de Almería.
Cucumbers with heart and star shapes, grown in Almería with biological control techniques, are not only attractive because of their original appearance, but also because of their unique agronomic and organoleptic characteristics. For the development of this new line of cucurbits, Zayintec has implemented a process of innovation and improvement on a variety of the Persian cucumber, from the Middle East.
The entry into force on 19 October of the FTA with Chile will expand opportunities for Nicaraguan products.
Over 97% of the supply of Nicaragua’s exportable products now enters the Chilean market duty free. According to the manager of the Export and Investment Center (CEI in Spanish), Roberto Brenes, in the next few years, exports may be duplicated.
Current consumption in the European market has reached $65 million and is still growing, estimated to reach $200 million in 5 years.
A statement by PROCOMER reads:
The market for coconut water in the European Union has an estimated value of USD 65 million, and according to projections, anticipated sales could reach $200 million over five years but there is no intensive advertising or marketing being undertaken.
The lifting of restrictions on bean exports has revealed a harsh reality as previous buyers are being supplied by other vendors.
Nicaraguan bean exports have failed to recover from the negative effects of restrictions on its output by the government for a year, which were finally lifted in early 2012 - due to the loss of markets that these obstacles created.
Six Nicaraguan companies traded coffee, honey, sesame seeds, and cashews with European buyers at the organic products fair Biofach 2012.
The Association of Nicaraguan Producers and Exporters (APEN) and the Export and Investment Center (CEI), reported that six Nicaraguan companies also connected with 80 potential buyers.
The most popular products were coffee, honey, sesame seeds, and cashews, which will be sent to Germany, UK, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Holland, France, Spain and Denmark, according to an article on Laprensa.com.ni.
In the two days of meetings representatives from 247 companies negotiated sales of $25 million, surpassing previous figures.
The product which made the most sales was coffee at 55%, followed by fruits and vegetables with 22%, said Azucena Castillo, general manager of the Association of Producers and Exporters of Nicaragua (APEN).
"APEN believes that not only was the show successful but also the Third Central American Congress of Food Science and Technology, which brought together 33 international experts, who gave 23 specialized lectures to domestic producers", writes Gisella Canales for La Prensa.
The supply of Nicaraguan products, particularly food, cannot keep up with demand from the Taiwanese market.
While exports have increased 172%, from $5.4 million in the first six months of 2009 to $14.7 million in the same period of 2010, Anita Huang, economic council to the Taiwanese Embassy in Nicaragua has indicated that the south east asian country's market can cope with more.