Chile has already made a notable impression in the agro-products sector within major Indian cities, and now it seeks to extend its reach to smaller cities. The country aims to introduce its premium selection of wines, walnuts, and other dry fruits to these markets. In addition, Chile is keen on educating its customers about the origin of their products. To accomplish this, the country is set to launch a brand-building campaign that will include a masterclass on Chilean wines and various other events. Through these initiatives, Chile hopes to establish a strong presence and create awareness among consumers about the quality and origin of its offerings.
Ignacio Fernandez Ruiz, General Director of ProChile, an arm of the Foreign Ministry that deals in the promotion of exports, said, “There is a lot of interest here. There is a big opportunity here, we are going to increase that. We are not only talking of big cities, but also looking at Tier-2, Tier-3 cities.”
According to Ruiz, ProChile is currently engaging in discussions with local importers and businesses in order to identify potential new markets in India.
Chile has been actively exporting a variety of products, including walnuts, wines, cherries, kiwis, and prunes, to India. In addition, the country is highly motivated to expand its range of food products covered under the preferential trade agreement.
“We could go further in our trade relationship in terms of our trade agreement that can be enhanced in order to put more goods into it,” Ruiz said.
Chile became the pioneer among Latin American countries by individually signing a trade agreement with India. Currently, both nations maintain a partial scope agreement that was put into effect in 2017.
Ruiz stated that his objective is to increase people’s awareness that the popular products found in local markets originate from Chile.
“We do have some products here, but people do not know that the source of the products is Chile. That is probably the main target of this mission,” he said.
In addition, ProChile is commencing the opening of a fresh trade office in Mumbai, alongside an engaging masterclass entitled “Exploring Chile via Wines.”
“We are going to have a masterclass on Chilean wines — the main features of the wines, their characteristics, the valleys where they are produced,” Ruiz said.
According to his statement, the bilateral trade between India and Chile exceeds USD 2 billion, with New Delhi enjoying a favorable trade balance.
“The important thing is that the trade relationship between the two countries has grown intensively during the last 15 years since we signed the partial agreement in trade in 2007.
“The trade between both countries has increased by 500 per cent or something like that. We can see that there is a necessity to go further,” Ruiz said.
