On the weekend of 19-21 October, the fourth edition of ExpoPlantas, the Colombian Nursery Trade Show, took place in Fusagasugá, Colombia. With 80 exhibitors from eight countries and 1,000 professional visitors, the show exceeded expectations. Syngenta's colleague Luis Corsini, Key Account Manager LATAM was present at the booth of the distributor L&G Agroflowers and looked back on a successful show.
Besides various workshops, guest speakers, and a recognition ceremony, there was also a contest held for 'Best Plant Material' on display at the show.
The judges awarded the Begonia Top Hat White with second place in the Best Outdoor Product category based on flower size, shape, garden performance, and botanical performance. Interestingly the audience of the show, mostly growers, rated the Top Hat Rose Bicolor as the best.
Besides the Begonia Top Hat, also the Cyclamen Winter Ice had a notable recommendation from the judges in the category of Best Indoor Product. Cyclamen is a very demanded product and is well-known by Colombian growers.
Luis Corsini received the Award from ExpoPlantas together with the management of Distributor L&G Agroflowers.
Feel the energy in Colombia
Luis is pleased with the developments he sees in his area: "Colombia is a new market for Syngenta's products, with lots of exciting opportunities. Currently, the focus is on cut flowers. Colombian growers are able to produce high-quality flowers with low-tech production methods. There are lots of different plants that can grow under the same conditions.
"Colombia is a springboard market for other Latin American countries and can act as a catalysator for the other markets in the region. Syngenta has two distributors and lots of trials running, for instance, in Dahlias, in collaboration with growers and other partners. Especially in seeds, Syngenta is going to run a lot of trials to add new series to this market.
Michael van Baekel, Head of Marketing Business International, adds: "We see quite some potential in the Columbian market. Not only due to the presence of technically skilled growers. But also, compared to a huge market like Brazil, there is less delay due to Country Access. This is probably because the ornamental export industry is quite big in Colombia. So, there is more governmental focus on compliantly bringing in seeds compared to other countries in the region. Based on these characteristics, you can say Colombia is really a flower country."
For more information:
Syngenta Flowers
www.syngentaflowers.com