To help Taiwanese food businesses adapt to the impacts of China's sudden import bans, the Ministry of Economic Affairs is promoting the Taiwan Global Food Initiative from August to December 2022. The government will help diversify export markets for processed food vendors by expanding domestic and foreign markets, enhancing business competitiveness and providing financial support, with NT$200 million (US$6.6 million) of new funding devoted to guidance measures to help businesses broaden their markets.
Key points
■ Expand domestic and foreign markets: Strengthen organization of domestic events such as the Taiwan Culinary Exhibition and the Taipei International Food and Catering Expo to promote sales of domestic cake and pastry brands. Co-organize trade shows to advertise products with overseas distributors, launch large-scale international sales promotions, and open pop-up stores in shopping centers, concentrating on 13 countries around the globe including in North America, Europe, Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia. Set up international online shopping promotions, such as a special section for Taiwanese processed foods on Redmart, Singapore's largest online grocery store. Facilitate Taiwanese participation in overseas food exhibitions and organize small-scale trade missions for one-on-one virtual meetings with foreign buyers. Combine online and offline marketing designed to expand markets for Taiwanese processed food products and help Taiwanese food businesses develop international sales channels.
■ Enhance competitiveness: Offer tailored guidance to businesses on topics including joint marketing with overseas distributors, digital marketing (cross-border e-commerce platforms, digital content creation, data-driven precision marketing, etc.), and helping producers obtain international food safety certifications such as ISO22000, HACCP and SQF. Assist the digital transformation of cake and pastry businesses, for example by introducing intelligent technology applications, strengthening brand optimization and expanding marketing channels.
■ Provide financial support: Provide loan extensions, working capital loans and stimulus loans with reduced interest for impacted businesses short on funds.