A warm welcome was given to the first shipment of Truval Conference pears from Belgium at this month’s Osaka World Expo in Japan
After several months of preparation, Truval pears were successfully introduced at the Osaka World Expo on 14 September during the Belgian Pavilion’s National Day.
In the presence of Belgian federal ministers David Clarinval (agriculture and economy) and Vanessa Matz (public action and modernisation), Belgian Fruit Valley, represented by business development manager Asia Thomas Simillion, had the opportunity to showcase the much appreciated Belgian Truval Conference pear.
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“The pears were sourced from specially selected orchards of BelOrta growers in order to be in line with Japan’s quarantine requirements,” said Marc Evrard, commercial director at Belgian Fruit Valley. “The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan facilitated the presentation via special procedure. The federal representation at the Belgian embassy in Tokyo offered its fullest support in making this happen.
“The expertise and commitment of our partners at Dole Japan and Itochu Corp have been of the utmost importance. Without their guidance and assistance on all levels and throughout the entire process this would not have been possible.”
Reactions to the Truval Conference were “extremely positive”, according to Evrard. “This definitely confirmed our belief in the potential of the Belgian Conference pear for the Japanese market as a healthy and tasty addition to the consumer’s diet,” he said.
The presentation at the Osaka World Expo will be followed this week by high level meetings between representatives of both Belgian and Japanese governments.
AloJapan.com