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in briet
Afund of opportunity
Sweetassugar
Fruit focus
New publication
i r What's NewS Issue 4 June/ July 2000 I "J
ith or without sugar? The choice is yours. But if
any of your clients are involved in the sugar chain
the industry itself, the bakery, confectionary or beverage
industry - they should know about RI's upeonting Global
Conference on Sugar and Starch Swcetcners 2000 in
Barcelona. During 9-11 October, the conference will bring
together business leaders from every segment in the swcet
cners market chain. A panel of top corporate speakers, i
representing beet and cane sugar processors, trading
houses, multinational and local food and beverage industries is scheduled to partici-
pate. Official conference invitations were sent to offices around the network at the end
of June, so that 'sweet' clients and prospectivc customers can be informed and invited.
The Agri Project Finance Team was al-
ways known for its creative approach
to business - its 'swan song' is no differ
ent. As the team is absorbed into various
other units within Rl or départs for new
challenges, members have set up a charita-
ble fund aimed at support for the emerg-
ing markets that represented its focus ar-
eas in the 1990s. According to Niek
Streefkerk (see letter in this issue of
What's NewS): 'Potential beneficiaries of
proceeds from the fund would include
street children, people hit by natural dis
asters, war victims, and education pro
grams in emerging markets, and women
in developing countries.' But giving
money to the Emerging Markets Charity
Fund is the easy part. Former APFTers
and other Rl people are invited to invest
personal time and energy to promote the
fund. Here's an example: Iwona Lechocka
of APFT, Utrecht, is undertaking a trek
along the Inca Trail in Peru, at her own
expense, to raise funds for AFS. An inter
national, registered charity with over
100,000 volunteers working in 54
countries, AFS focuses on developmental
programs for young people and has been
awarded a United Nations citation for its
work with disabled, orphaned and street
children. Many of AFS' programs address
the problems of secondary education
(teaching and construction projects); oth-
ers offer rehabilitation for street children.
By sponsoring an initiative like Iwona's,
money will be raised to fund volunteers
working in orphanages in Lima and to
support schools in buying basic classroom
needs - like paper and pencils.
If you have ideas on how to contribute to
this new fund, please contact us. All ideas
are welcome. The fund will be supervised
by Rik van Slingerlandt, Hans Megens
and Frans van Bijsterveld. Monetary con-
tributions are also very welcome in ac
count 3947.80.450 with Rabobank
Utrecht, rcfcrence 'Emerging Markets
Charity Fund'.
Rabobank Singapore re-
cently acted as main
sponsor to the Asiafruit
Congress 2000, a two-day
conference held on April
12-13 alongside the FHA
2000, Asia's largest food
and drink exhibition. Edgare Kerkwijk
More than 260 delegates
from over 30 countries attended the Con
gress, representing numerous producers
and exporters in the fruit industry. As part
of RI's role as sponsor, Edgare Kerkwijk,
FAR's regional industry analyst, Southeast
Asia and Annemiek Geene, FAR's fresh
fruit industry analyst, gave a keynote
speech at the conference. 'There's a huge
potential in Asia in terms of both con-
sumption and production,' says Kerkwijk.
'The region is catching up very quickly,
and we're showing investors its enormous
growth capacity. Participating in events
like the Asiafruit Congress gives us the
opportunity to emphasize the bank's F&A
expertise and helps regenerate optimism
in Asia.' While still recovering from the
'Asian flu', and there's a need for a num-
ber of structural improvements - such as
quality control - in the region,
it's expected that fresh fruit
and vegetable producers will
be the first to show strong sales
in the future. 'Investors tend to
overlook the real F&A poten
tial in Asia,' Kerkwijk ex-
plained. 'If you look at produc-
ing apples in India and China
alone, their capacity could be 50% of to-
tal global production. That means global
market leaders.'
The latest global market study, 'The Dynamics of Cocoa and Chocolate', is
now available. The study offers a general overview of the cocoa and choco
late industry, in-depth analyses of the primary drivers, and outlooks for the future
of the sector. At the same time, FAR has been busy at work on several other pub-
lications. Two regional studies, 'Food Retail Chains in China' and 'The Mexican
Flower Industry' are currently available. The following global market studies are
currently in-progress: food ingredients, pork, potatoes, e-commerce in F&A and
a world cotton map. For more information, please contact Martha van den Berg
by email or phone +31 30 216 1178.