Food and drink firms visit Singapore on first Santander trade mission to the country

Organised by Santander Corporate & Commercial, in conjunction with United Overseas Bank (UOB) in Singapore, British Chamber of Commerce Singapore (BritCham) and the Department of International Trade (DIT), the week-long mission has sought to build relationships and create opportunities in an economy that imported $6.2 billion (SGD) worth of consumer-orientated food in 2017.

The requirement to meet the needs of a diverse population and workforce means that a large percentage of Singapore’s food must be imported, representing an enormous opportunity for UK firms wishing to tap into a desire for high-quality traditional British produce, as well as providing the perfect platform to grow into the wider Southeast Asia region.

The firms were able to take advantage of the Food & Hotel Asia Tradeshow, one of the largest in the region, where visits were arranged with a range of local buyers and distributors. Meetings were also set up with Cold Storage and NTUC FairPrice, two of Singapore’s largest supermarkets, and smaller luxury food chains including Culina Quality Food & Beverage, Euraco Finefood and Associate & United Distributors.

The companies that attended the trip included Burt’s Snacks, Crème d’Or, Taylors of Harrogate and Tiptree. 

Richard Cuda, Head of Strategic Alliances, Santander Corporate & Commercial said:

Singapore and the wider Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) market represents an excellent opportunity for dynamic UK firms to meet the high demand for quality food and drink produce. Santander is perfectly placed to help those businesses connect with key distributers and buyers, working alongside our colleagues at UOB.

The trade mission has also provided us with an excellent opportunity to showcase our Singaporean trade activity and demonstrate our in-country capabilities. Food and drink is a key sector for Santander Corporate & Commercial and we are committed to ensuring that British food and drink firms have the best opportunities possible when it comes to exporting overseas.

This trade mission is part of our drive to help the UK food and drink industry invest for growth and expand – in both the UK and abroad. The sector is one of the UK’s most successful and fast-growing markets and Santander is well positioned to help firms capitalise on this momentum. We regularly get UK firms out to markets to meet buyers and network with key stakeholders through trade missions. Previous missions include Chile, Argentina, the US, Spain and the United Arab Emirates.

UOB and Santander’s ASEAN alliance connects businesses to a global ecosystem of local bank and non-bank partners to facilitate greater cross-border trading between Southeast Asia and the UK.

Find out more about how we could help your business prosper internationally on our International hub.