With sponsorship from the Indiana Soybean Association, USAPEEC presented two seminars for chefs in the major cities of Bogota and Cartagena, Columbia during August.
Approximately 130 chefs attended with most affiliated to the hotel and restaurant sector. Demonstrations on preparation of duck meat were led by Chef Danielle Riveros. Angelica Rangel, Sales Manager for Maple Leaf Farms in Latin America provided information on commercial availability.
For the first half of 2022 exports of duck meat attained 1,925 metric tons up 46 percent compared to the first six months of 2021. Value in 2022 was $6.9 million, 61.0 percent higher than for the first six months of 2021. Unit price in 2022 was $3,605 per metric ton up 10.1 percent from the first half of 2021. Major importers were Mexico with 44.8 percent of export volume followed by Canada at 19.4 percent during the first half of 2022.
The concentration of the duck industry in a few counties in Indiana imposes risks for future exports by this sector of the poultry industry given exposure to HPAI during the 2022 epornitic. Applying the WAHO principle of regionalization duck exports were up 88.2 percent in July 2022 compared to the corresponding month in 2021. This attests to the promotional activities of USAPEEC and its influence on phytosanitary trade rules.