The Rural Voice, 1985-01, Page 8harvested their entire crop by hand.
White beans and corn were planted in
alternate rows in the field. "It wasn't
a bad arrangement." The corn pro-
vided shade and a canopy for the
beans.
The Bulgarians thought they were
making progress when they changed
to solid corn fields and solid beans
rather than the combination. They
were wrong. Bean yields dropped by
half. Beans suffered from a lack of
moisture. The amount of rainfall in
Bulgaria is similar to the rainfall in
Ontario in April, May, and June, so
Bulgarians have similar white -bean
disease problems. However, there is
very little rain, if any, during the re-
maining season. This lack causes
serious problems when the crop is
mechanically harvested; the beans
shatter easily because of their
dryness. The Bulgarians are looking
for adaptable varieties and im-
provements in mechanization to han-
dle the beans more gently. In the
meantime, they need to import beans
to fill their needs this year because of
the dramatic drop in production.
The group met with Hranexport,
the group that handles the business
side of Bulgarian export. This group
is currently evaluating the size of the
crop. "If they do go into the market,
I think they will consider us,"
Broadwell says.
IIlrprr.rrMing lanMI.i♦ %%Mr
.ind hiIos* vit. Ilran IndWr,
In the export business one must
establish contacts, Broadwell em-
phasizes. After the important initial
meeting, one can work over the
phone and with telex, but contacts do
expect to see you again. Trade mis-
sions are less frequent, however,
when the bean crop is smaller, says
Broadwell. The money available and
the size of the crop indicate when
trade missions are warranted.
The initial reason for Broadwell's
recent trade mission was to attend a
conference in the U.K. The U.K. is
traditionally the number one market
for Ontario white beans, Broadwell
says. Beans are Ontario's third largest
agricultural export to the U.K. and
the top edible one. The number one
export is tobacco followed by furs
and skins.
The U.K. is a quality market. "We
still can't just depend on tradition, we
have to earn that market," Broadwell
says. They hope to shorten the time
lapse between conferences by holding
them every two years than every four
years. After too long, the impact is
lost, says Broadwell. Sending a
number of delegates is also
preferable. Because of belt -tightening
a few years ago, fewer people could
attend the conferences in the U.K.,
thus limiting the significance of the
event. The board does assist many of
the delegates with travelling expenses.
When exporting 80 per cent of his
crop, a producer can't afford to lose
a big customer to competition from
Michigan or Dakota bean growers.
The two largest agricultural trade
shows in the world are held alternate-
ly in Germany and France. Broadwell
says that bean producers have been
represented consistently at events
such as these. At these trade shows,
good relations are established and
leads to potential customers are
found.
"The Baked Bean Story," a film
made to promote the commodity, has
been popular in potential export
countries, Broadwell says. An export
version of the film is kept in England
for promotional use.
To maintain bean sales in the ex-
porting area, Broadwell does take ad-
vantage of federal and provincial ser-
vices and grants. The world's getting
smaller, and there is great deal of
competition for markets out there.
"You have to keep looking all the
time," Broadwell concludes. ❑
Creating export opportunities
Not every agricultural business
has the need, desire, or abili-
ty to export. For those who
do want to export, however, currency
exchange, product promotion, trans-
portation, language, and legislation
are all limiting factors. In the spring
of 1984, AGREXO, the Agricultural
Export Association of Ontario, was
created to make export opportunities
more accessible.
Some obstacles appear formidable
to beginners in the export business
and this company's mandate is to
scale those obstacles down to size.
AGREXO is the brainchild of a num-
ber of people in private industry who
want to promote export both for new
exporters and for companies who
have varying degrees of export ex-
perience. In 1983 a steering commit-
tee was formed, and by May of 1984 a
nine -man board of directors was
elected by the 12 member companies.
Gene Stampfer, a 15 -year veteran of
6 THE RURAL. VOICE
the export business, was elected as
managing director and a office was
established in Hensall.
Since then, AGREXO has moved
to London and has expanded to in-
clude more than 20 member com-
panies. Stampher says they need 50 to
really make it work. He expects to
reach that goal within a year.
AGREXO is a non-profit organiza-
tion, explains Stampher. "It exists
not for the benefit of AGREXO itself
but for the member companies."
Each company pays a $2,000 annual
membership fee which gives
AGREXO the finances to encourage
trade missions, promote products,
and perform other services to assist
member companies with exporting.
Although AGREXO is not a gov-
ernment agency, it works closely with
both the federal and provincial
governments. The connection is often
a beneficial one because it increases
credibility in foreign countries, Stam-
pher says.
Member companies to date are ex-
porting products as varied as Ontario
wine and water-soluble fertilizer.
There are no member companies in
Bruce or Grey counties, yet, but there