OREANDA-NEWS. September 17, 2015. More than 400 exporters of food products from Latin America and the Caribbean met in Paraguay with international buyers from around the world at LAC Flavors, one of the region's most important gatherings for the food and beverage sector.

More than 20 government trade-promotion agencies also participated in the event, together with about 100 buyers from 30 countries including the United States, Australia, Japan, Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy and Belgium.

LAC Flavors is a business forum organized by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) each year since 2009, through its online business networking platform ConnectAmericas.com. The 7th edition, being held for the first time in the Southern Cone, was organized jointly with Paraguay’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, through the Network for Investments and Exports, known as REDIEX. It was inaugurated by Industry and Trade Minister Gustavo Leite and Eduardo Almeida, the IDB representative in Paraguay.

“One of our priorities at the IDB is to help the region’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to break into the world markets, making it easier for them to do business internationally,” said Fabrizio Opertti, head of the IDB’s Trade and Investment Unit. “We hope that more and more businesspeople will take part in LAC Flavors and join ConnectAmericas, an initiative we developed at the IDB precisely to support the international expansion of SMEs.”

During the event, the businesspeople had the opportunity to attend sessions on adding value to their exportable goods, financing opportunities for SMEs, the process of certifying food and beverage companies, and transportation and logistics, among other issues.

They also were able to meet up with possible buyers and suppliers through a “matchmaking” system facilitated by the IDB, which arranges an agenda of back-to-back business meetings for the exporters. During the six previous editions of LAC Flavors, more than 8,000 business interviews and \\$200 million in sales were arranged.

For more information on the event go to: www.lacflavors.com

About the IDB

The Inter-American Development Bank is devoted to improving lives. Established in 1959, the IDB is a leading source of long-term financing for economic, social and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB also conducts cutting-edge research and provides policy advice, technical assistance and training to public and private sector clients throughout the region.