The exotic flavor and texture of Honduran okra has managed to find a market in the sophisticated markets of Britain, France, Spain and Italy, and in two months it will also be present in the Netherlands and Russia.
Marco Flores, president of Cuasa, a company that exports okra and that is located in Choluteca, stated that they were in the final stages of the negotiations starting shipments to these two new destinations.
"The talks are already advanced. We only need to define some details, but we project that we will ship the first containers to Holland and Russia next January," Flores said.
The businessman said that the industry expects to double shipments to Europe this year.
"We are expecting to have a 400% growth in exports to the European market. This increase will be due to a higher production and increased orders," said the businessman. Flores said the company went from exporting 80,000 boxes of okra to 400,000 boxes, an unprecedented increase for the company.
"If we continue at this pace we expect production to grow by 30% in 2016. Thankfully, the Honduran product is very appreciated in this important market, "said Flores.
Markets
Honduran exports to Europe have had a good growth in the past two years, going from $537.4 million dollars to $652.5 million dollars, i.e. a $115.1 million dollars increase.
The European market is currently the second largest destination of shipments of Honduran products, with a share of 28.5%, according to data from the Central Bank of Honduras (BCH).
By June this year, exports to Europe stood at $652.5 million dollars, $113.9 million more (+21.2%) than in 2014.
The products that are marketed the most to Europe are: coffee, palm oil, shrimp, melons, watermelons and oriental vegetables.
Main partner
Sales to the United States, Honduras' main trading partner, amounted to $772 million dollars during the first period of the year; shipments of bananas, coffee, gold, melons, watermelons, and vegetables stand out.
