Above photo: Carolina Lorduy, executive director of the food industry sector of ANDI.

Maria Claudia Lacouture, President of Procolombia

“This is one of the sectors with the highest potential to attract foreign investment, with a dynamic internal market and an export platform to The Americas, Europe, and Asia,” said María Claudia Lacouture, the president of Colombia’s export promotion agency, ProColombia. “These factors have led to the arrival of 25 new projects backed by ProColombia between 2010 and 2015, from 14 different countries like Germany, Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Spain, The United States, Italy, and others, amounting to $570 million USD, and according to those businesses, creating over 8,200 jobs.”

Colombia’s capital Bogotá hopes to position itself as a natural base for the coming growth in the industry, with Bogotá’s local investment promotion agency Invest in Bogotá actively promoting the city of 9 million to the sector. Says Invest in Bogotá’s executive director Juan Gabriel Pérez: “Aside from counting on highly specialized human resources, with 16% of Colombia’s population and household consumption growing 5.1% annually, Bogotá is also a center of consumption within the country. In 2014 metro Bogotá recorded sales of more than $9.2 billion USD in the sector, representing 46% of total sales in the industry. As such, the capital region is home to 44 of the 100 principal companies in the sector; big players like PepsiCo, Danone, Parmalat, Bimbo, and Dole. Dole for example, invested approximately $18 million in construction and operations at its new plant in (Bogotá suburb) Madrid, Cundinamarca.”

Juan Gabriel Pérez, Executive Director – Invest in Bogotá

“The food industry is a fundamental actor in the development of Colombia, and of course, Bogotá. We are facing conditions favorable for the growth in the industry such as the increase in household consumption and large-scale investments in the sector. Challenges to growth in 2016 such as exchange rates and natural phenomena like El Niño notwithstanding, the food industry is committed to public wellbeing, progress of the country, and converting into a true export platform generating economic and social benefits for all involved in the agriculture / food supply value chain,” says Carolina Lorduy, executive director of the food industry sector of ANDI.

Photos provided courtesy of Precise Engagement