Agricultural cooperatives are increasingly expanding the focus of their operations toward retailing, especially through their own brands of ready-to-eat food. The finding is clear after a tour of the Apas fair, the main event of the country’s supermarket sector, which ended on Thursday (10), in São Paulo (SP). Large cooperatives, such as Coamo, Copacol, Aurora, Frimesa, Lar, among others, were present along the corridors of the fair, side by side with stands of multinationals. Focus on the final consumer in the domestic market and an eye on exports of ready-made products are the priorities of the cooperatives, according to industry executives.
According to Valdemir Paulino dos Santos, commercial manager of Copacol, which transforms poultry, pork and fish into ready-made meats, the cooperatives are in an increasingly sharp process of verticalization of their businesses, working from field to table. “We are increasingly closer to the consumer, with our own brands. It’s a big trend, “he said.
According to Alcir José Goldoni, Coamo’s commercial superintendent, the advancement of agricultural cooperatives in retail is a natural process. “The consumer is the mainstay of the cooperative. Our cooperative producers are concerned about the quality of food since the choice of inputs, “he said. Coamo specializes in the benefit of grains [soy, corn, wheat], milk and coffee, turning them into ready-made foods.
Exports of meat
On the other hand, regarding the meat exports, for example, the scenario is more complicated, after the unfolding of the new phase of “Operation Low Flesh,” Paulino said. “The shipments of chicken have suffered a thud. We had a loss of value due to the greater offer and less destinations, “said the executive. “Importers also took advantage of the situation to propose renegotiation of contracts, which pressured prices.”