20 



COMMERCIAL FISHERIES REVIEW 



Vol. 28, No. 11 



Other "eye catchers" in the fresh fish dis- 

 play were salmon and Dungeness crab from 

 the west coast; pompano and Spanish mack- 

 erel from Florida; and scallops, cherrystone 

 clams, and swordfish from Boston. 



In a special lounge reserved for trades- 

 people, a $100,000 order for 25 tons of king 

 crab was placed in 5 minutes. Large hotels 

 and airlines showed much interest in this 

 item. Firm orders for U. S. fisheryproducts 

 are expected to continue as a result of the 

 trade promotion at these two fairs. 



US0«*nf1nientoJ Interior 



f'",ig. 3 - Bureau of Commercial Fisheries entrance to the trade 

 lounge. Left, Hutchinson; center, James W. Riddleberger, 

 U. S. Ambassador to Austria; Agricultural Attache'H, A. Baehr. 



Before Vienna and Munich, BCF took part 

 in the fairs at Manchester, London, Milan, 

 Brussels, and Cologne. 



How BCF Helps Exporters 



The BCF International Trade Promotion 

 program is designed to increase present 

 markets abroad for United States fishery 

 products and to find outlets for new products. 

 The emphasis to date has been on Western 

 Europe because its increasing affluence is 

 reflected in its greater receptivity to gour- 

 met items. The fact that the Department of 

 Agriculture is focusing on this area is anoth- 

 er motivating reason. But BCF sees other 

 markets too in the future. 



The program brings buyer and seller to- 

 gether. It gives the U.S. exporter a chance 

 to show his products, to find trained foreign 

 agents to represent him, and to aid negotia- 

 tions that have been conducted only by letter. 

 BCF offers assistance to any firm that wants 

 to participate, and an exporter receives 



much help: instructions on what he can send 

 and how to send it (he only provides the prod- 

 uct and pays for transportation); display 

 space is made available at no cost; he re- 

 ceives publicity abroad he could not buy; his 

 name appears in the display booth over his 

 products. His expenses can be written off 

 for tax purposes as costs of doing business. 

 And, under a new BCF policy initiated at 

 Vienna this September, he does not have to 

 send a representative to the fair. BCF is 

 there to work with interested foreign trades- 

 people: Trained Bureau marketing special- 

 ists help these importers fill out fisheryprod- 

 uct inquiry slips --and then transmit these to 

 the U.S. firms able to make quotations and 

 supply the products. 



Among the highlight of sales resulting 

 from the fairs were a $300,000 order for 

 frozen salmon from Cologne, and another 

 $100,000 order for king crab at London. 



Some Results of the Program 



The display of American fishery products 

 abroad has won thousands of fans. At Man- 

 chester, England, 10,000 samples were dis- 

 tributed to visitors: king crab, shrimp, 

 scallops, salmon, squid, and lobsters. BCF 

 is not above using culinary magic to win over 

 buyers. The deep-fried, breaded, soft-shelled 

 clams were "eaten up" by German, Belgian, 

 and Italian fair visitors. The breaded clams 

 opened the door to sales of this frozen food 

 delicacy. 



The experience of the first full year in- 

 dicates that quality ready-to-eat items now 

 can compete for the attention and money of 

 the European housewife. Exhibitors know 

 there is an expanding market for U.S. fro- 

 zen and canned specialties --including shrimp, 

 clams, caviar, king crab, mullet, squid, and 

 salmon. Some visualize a potential for fresh 

 whole Alaska salmon- -flown over the North 

 Pole to foreign markets. 



Heading the International Trade Promotion 

 Office is Samuel J. Hutchinson, a BCF veter- 

 an of 34 years who was Regional Director of 

 the Bureau's Pacific Northwest Region in 

 Seattle, Washington. His associates areA.L. 

 Morel, who did much spadework for the for- 

 eign program and forged a network of friends 

 and industry contacts abroad, and Lester F. 

 Reynolds, who came to the Bureau after ex- 

 tensive experience in the sales and promotion 

 of frozen products of the U. S. food industry. 



