Strong Turnout for Unveiling of USMEF’s Sub-Saharan Africa Project

Bill Duggan, vice president of refrigerated services for Maersk Line, speaks at the unveiling of USMEF’s Sub-Saharan Africa project

As part of its work to continue to grow demand for U.S. beef, pork and lamb in emerging markets across the globe, USMEF unveiled its highly anticipated Sub-Saharan Africa project this week in Atlanta. Funding for initial research in the region and the market assessment phase of the project has been provided primarily by the USDA’s Emerging Markets Program.

Sixty USMEF members attended the rollout meeting, including exporters, packers, shipping companies and producers, as well as representatives from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. A broad mix of exporters was in attendance, with some already shipping poultry, beef, and pork to the region while others were just researching this market opportunity.

USMEF has identified Angola, Benin, Republic of Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal as having the most potential demand for U.S. beef, pork and lamb. These seven countries are among the wealthiest in Africa (outside of South Africa) and make up nearly 300 million of the current 1.1 billion people living on the continent. Africa’s population is expected to nearly triple by 2070, to a total of 3.2 billion.

In addition to this significant population growth, Sub-Saharan Africa (the region south of North Africa) is quickly emerging as a potential destination for U.S. red meat exports because of surging per capita income, rapid urbanization and the fastest growing middle class in the world. The region also has one of the youngest demographic profiles in the world, with more than 40 percent of the population under the age of 30.

Kurt Seifarth, USDA-FAS regional agricultural counselor for Ghana, Benin and Nigeria, offers observations on export opportunities in the region

In West Africa, 95 percent of protein consumed is sold in traditional wet markets. These are markets with no cold chain and, in many cases, no electricity, but some U.S. variety meat and other offal items are sold there. U.S. chicken leg quarters are already marketed in the region, which is good news for red meat imports as the population is already becoming familiar with U.S. meat products.

While wet markets handle most of the volume, modern retail outlets have emerged in Sub-Saharan Africa. As the population grows and consumer spending power increases, demand for higher-value products will grow significantly, creating opportunities for a wider range of muscle cuts – including middle meats. Modern retail stores provide a venue in which these cuts can be differentiated and showcased.

“These retail stores would not look out of place in the United States or in any developed country in the world,” said Monty Brown, a USMEF representative conducting research in the region. “This especially rings true when you see customers going through the checkout line with $200 to $250 worth of groceries in the cart, which is not unusual.”

These retail chains have rapidly emerged as an attractive target for U.S. exporters, and that interest was on full display in Atlanta.

“The rollout meeting was phenomenal, and very upbeat,” said Dan Halstrom, USMEF senior vice president for global marketing. “Our next steps include continuing to build relationships and working to educate people in the region about U.S. food safety and production practices. One idea that was developed during the meeting is to create a product showcase in the region to really introduce U.S. beef, pork and lamb to the market and connect exporters with prospective buyers.”

Halstrom, who has visited the countries of Ghana, Benin and Nigeria for research purposes, added that a primary takeaway from the Atlanta meeting was that USMEF members are excited about the potential of these new markets, ready to conduct more research in the region and anxious get to work building business relationships. This was reflected in the positive feedback from attendees.

“The West African market has great potential that is just starting to be recognized,” said Dean Freese, national account sales manager from FPL Food LLC. “It is extremely important to demonstrate to these potential markets that you are truly interested in their business. They are relationship-driven people and they need education about our products. The time is right for this work and the potential harvest is plenty.”

“It’s obvious that this is a market with tremendous potential in the years ahead,” said Chris Hoben, director for Palmetto Food Service. “This week’s meeting and market assessment were very informative and we’re excited to have USMEF and FAS helping us to navigate these markets.”

USDA’s Emerging Markets Program provided the majority of the funding for the USMEF Sub-Saharan Africa project. Maersk Line, the world’s leading container shipping company, sponsored the Atlanta meeting to roll out the project. In addition to providing financial support, both Maersk and the USDA FAS offices in West Africa were extremely helpful with in-country research in the region.