US supermarkets want to buy Dominican agro products directly

New York.- US National Supermarkets Association (NSA) on Thursdaysaid they want to buy agro products directly from Dominican producers, who’llfirst be identified to ensure they can deliver the quantity and quality theyrequire annually.

NSA president Rodolfo Fuertes and other executives met in theNew York Institute of Technology Thursday with delegates of Dominican Week inthe United States, at the behest of the Global Foundation for Democracy andDevelopment’s (GFDD).

The head of the organization that groups more than 400supermarkets in the US stressed the need for Dominican Republic to become morecompetitive to reduce operating costs and improve prices on their products, aswell as certain necessary infrastructure to produce exports that meet the US phytosanitaryconditions and the needs of the US market.

"But what we also need is an availability platform thatidentifies short and medium term production and know who the producers we canbuy from are. We’re very interested in doing that," the executive said.

Speaking on the same topic, NSA director Pedro Goico said thesector here, "can be ready to receive the product, but needs the creationof a sustained export culture and not export only when the tourism demand forthese products is low. It must be maintained the entire year."

Gustavo Tavares, president of the American Chamber ofCommerce of the Dominican Republic (AMCHAMDR), which heads the initiative,asked the NSA to identify the conditions of their proposal to make it feasibleand that the Chamber is in the best position to meet their conditions.