St. Maarten/St. Martin entices U.S. exporters with duty-free status

AgExporter, May, 2002

A ray of hope for private label manufacturers--one lower-end food supermarket that introduced a few private label brands two years ago has just seen the products really start to move off the shelves.

Bauer emphasized how meeting French packaging requirements for expiration dates could make U.S. products more competitive. "Dry products sales to French St. Martin would be substantially enhanced if exporters printed the date of minimum shelf life for perishables or the date of optimal usage for non-perishables." Dates are not required for fresh produce, alcoholic beverages, vinegar, sugar, confectionery items and live shellfish intended for raw consumption.

St. Maarten follows the agricultural regulations established by the Netherlands, and St. Martin follows the agricultural regulations of France. "We have found that these regulations are not enforced in the same manner as within the European countries. It is best to work closely with your importer to determine exactly what is acceptable," said Bauer.

What's Good, What's Not: Exporting U.S. Food Products to St. Maarten/St.
Martin

Advantages                         Challenges

The island's 100-percent duty-     The high dependence of the local
free status encourages imports     population on the tourism sector
and development of the island      and the economic hardships as a
into a distribution hub to other   result of damage from three
islands.                           hurricanes since 1995 have slowed
                                   consumer retail sales.

Consumers are knowledgeable about  It may be difficult to find a
U.S. brands from TV                wholesaler not representing a
advertisements, tourist demands    competing brand already.
and travel to the United States.

Food import demand is fairly even  Some consumers are hesitant to
throughout the year, as tourism    change from traditional product
is relatively constant.            brands.

St. Maarten has strong product     St. Martin has strong product
influence from and purchasing      influence from and purchasing
ties to the United States.         ties to Europe, especially
                                   France.

The island enjoys an efficient     Private label is not yet a
and well-established distribution  significant category for sales.
infrastructure.

For more information on the market for U.S. agricultural products in St. Maarten/St. Martin and elsewhere in the Caribbean, including a list of potential importers for your U.S. products, contact:

Caribbean Basin Agricultural Trade Office

Miami, FL

Tel.: (1-305) 536-5300

Fax: (1-305) 536-7577

E-mail: chato@attglobal.net

Web site: www.chato.fas.usda

For details, see FAS Reports C12001 and C11013. To find them on the Web, start at www.fas.usda.gov, select Attache Reports and follow the prompts.