KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 (NNN-Bernama) — The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) and the Malaysian embassy in the Netherlands have collaborated with Wah Nam Hong, one of Holland’s leading Asian supermarkets, to conduct an online promotion programme called “Flavours of Malaysia.”
The one-month programme, which kicked off on Malaysia Day on Sept 16 2021, aims to increase market awareness about Malaysian food and beverage (F&B)and to strengthen Malaysia’s brand presence in the F&B segment there.
MATRADE Rotterdam trade commissioner Emeliana Zainol said with the current pandemic situation, sales via online platforms have been growing at a double-digit rate.
“It is important to reach out to consumers in the Netherlands via online platforms as more than 80 per cent of Dutch consumers used e-commerce to purchase goods last year, especially during the pandemic.
“The situation has also created a cooking-at-home trend, as eating at home has become a norm and perceived to be a healthier choice,” she said in a statement issued by MATRADE today.
“Increasing consumer awareness on nutrition …has created a demand for functional food and organic food, not only in the Netherlands but in Europe at large,” she added.“Therefore, Malaysian F&B exporters are also encouraged to focus on these emerging food trends,” she said.
The Netherlands remained as Malaysia’s second largest trading partner in Europe in 2020, with total trade amounting to RM27.85 billion. Malaysia’s exports to the Netherlands grew by 28.4 per cent in the first nine months of 2021 despite the pandemic that affected world trade.
— NNN-BERNAMA