Southern United States Trade Association Hosting Fall Meeting in OKC
Posted by arthur1234 on December 1, 2011
The Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA) is hosting its state fall meeting in Oklahoma City running through Friday, December 2, 2011. SUSTA is a non-profit agricultural export trade development association comprised of the Departments of Agriculture of the 15 southern states and theCommonwealthofPuerto Rico. Since 1973, SUSTA programs and services have assisted exporters of high-value food and agricultural products.
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture has worked in cooperation with SUSTA for many years to assistOklahomaproducers in gaining access to foreign markets. These companies include Head Country,Griffin’s, Clements Foods, VAP and Pepper Creek Farms.Barbara CharletandHaidar Haidarywith the International Division of Market Development at the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry work with theseOklahomacompanies and foreign buyers on a routine basis. The coordinators specialize in assisting both buyers and sellers with information and technical advice when conducting foreign trade. Charlet and Haidary assist state companies with overcoming trade barriers such as cultural and language differences, governmental trade restrictions and financial limitations.
One way thatOklahomaproducers can expand their opportunities is through the Market Access Program (MAP) Branded. The Branded program is designed to help small agriculture companies enter export markets with 50% reimbursement for promotional costs like advertising, exhibiting at trade shows, and changes to packaging and labels. Several companies are already tapping into these resources for 2012 and look forward to growing their businesses.
The purpose of the SUSTA fall meeting is to hear the latest market research from SUSTA’s four in-country consultants fromChina, the European Union,CanadaandIndia. The discussions will also focus on how partners can encourage more company participation in SUSTA projects; learn about the latest trends in agriculture export trade and how exports are directly impacting sales. 
