Namibia eyes increasing red meat exports to China, Middle East.

   WINDHOEK, March 12 -- Namibia is eyeing raising red meat exports to China and the Middle East with the view of broadening its market access and hiking agriculture export earnings, the state-owned Meat Board of Namibia (MBN) said Thursday.
   MBN Chief Marketing Officer Desmond Cloete said Namibia engaged the services of North-West University in South Africa to conduct a desktop market survey targeting China and the Middle East with the view of increasing red meat with special focus on beef, mutton and lamb exports to those destinations.
   The survey, which focused on the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and China, showed that those markets are lucrative and will go a long way in allowing Namibia to withstand market competition from other African producers, according to Cloete.
   "The next step would be to select a clear market entry approach and the study proposed the following strategies including exporting under a private label/brand: This can either be under a local brand name of an importer or supermarket in the importing country or under a brand established in the exporting country and building the product in the targeted market," he said.
   Cloete said Namibia should organize trade missions that can visit China and the Middle East working together with the Ministry of Industrialization, Trade and SME Development, the MBN or foreign missions in the region to create the needed synergies for more red meat product exports in those markets.
   He also called for Namibia to target participating trade shows such as Gulfood in Dubai, Sial in Abu Dhabi, Foodex Saudi in Jeddah, Kuwait International Agro Food Expo and Sial China in Shanghai to position their meat brands as a first option in those markets.  Xinhua