site.btaJapanese Production of Bulgarian Yoghurt Is Double the Bulgarian One

Japanese Production of Bulgarian Yoghurt  Is Double the Bulgarian One

Tokyo/Sofia, May 11 (BTA) - Economy Minister Bozhidar Loukarski took part in a Bulgarian-Japanese Business Forum in Tokyo, the press service of the Bulgarian Economy Ministry said. 

Loukarski is on a working visit to Japan from May 10 to 14 with  a business delegation including representatives of 16 Bulgarian companies operating in the areas of high technologies, processing and food industries.

The event was organized by the Japan Finance Corporation for Small and Medium Enterprise (JASME), the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and the  Japan-Bulgaria Economic Committee. Attending the forum were also Deputy Economy Minister Lyuben Petrov and Bulgarian Ambassador to Japan Georgi Vassilev. Representatives of 50 Japanese companies took part in the forum.
 
"There is serious potential for the further development of bilateral trade relations. The quality and traditions of the Bulgarian industy create preconditions for more tangible presence on the Japanese market," Minister Loukarski stated. He outlined the following spheres with potential for bilateral cooperation: healthy and bioporducts, cosmetic products from essential oils, products and services with higher added value and products of the ICT sector. Bulgaria also offers exceptionally good conditions for investments applying specific stimuli for supporting and attraction of foreign investments. The Bulgarian industrial zones offer very good possibilities for foreign investments, including Japanese ones, he noted.

JETRO President Yasushi Akahoshi said that Bulgaria has a number of advantages as investment destination: good infrastructure, low operational costs, dynamic IT and   outsourcing sectors. In the sidelines of the forum, Loukarski met with Koichiro Fukui, President of the Japan-Bulgaria Economic Committee.

The Bulgarian Economy Minister also discussed measures for the promotion of interaction between Bulgarian and Japanese SMEs with JASME Senior Managing Director Atsushi Toyonaga.
  
Minister Loukarski assured the Japanese side that Bulgaria works actively on increasing the bilateral trade, and underscored that the conclusion of the EU-Japan Free Trade Agreeement will also give a significant impetus. He expressed the hope that the negotiations on its conclusion will finish successfully by this year's end.

During his visit to Japan, Loukarski also went to the Moriya factory of Japan's Meiji company, which produces Bulgarian yogurt under a licence of the State-owned LB Bulgaricum company. The 29 factories of Meiji produce around 700 tonnes of Bulgarian yogurt a day, which is two-fold more than Bulgaria's entire daily production of this product. The Japanese company has a 49 per cent share on the country's yogurt and yogurt-based products market. At present, Meiji offers 30 types of products with the name of Bulgaria on them.  This year the company launched two new products based on innovative combinations of tastes, such as coriander and Bulgarian honey. During Loukarski's meeting with Meiji Co. Representative Director Kazuo Kawamura at the company's headquarters, it was underscored that the Bulgarian brand has a central place in Meiji's strategy.

In the last years, the Bulgarian export to Japan has grown, reaching 44.8 million dollars in 2015, which is by 17.3 per cent more compared to 2014. Last year, trade amounted to 138.4 million dollars, of which 93.6 million dollars came from Japanese import.