DHAKA, BANGLADESH — The Canadian High Commissioner in Bangladesh H.E. Benoit-Pierre Laramee underlined the importance of private sector buyers of Canadian grains in deepening bilateral relations between Canada and Bangladesh during the 2nd Grain Importers of Canada Meet Up on Jan. 14.

Laramee considers Bangladesh a very important market for grains of Canada. The event was hosted by CanCham Bangladesh in Dhaka. Masud Rahman, president of CanCham Bangladesh, chaired the meet up, which highlighted the various issues in regard to grain imports from Canada. Leading grain importers from Dhaka and Chittagong and bankers attended the meet up.

A presentation was made by CanCham Bangladesh on the findings of a survey conducted to identify the constraints associated with the import of grains from Canada.

All the grain importers present in the meeting identified the high price of Canadian grains as the main constraint in importing high volumes from Canada. They stated that Canadian exporters should be price competitive, especially with Australia. Some importers believe that if they get a good price and can import with minimum lead time, Canadian grains will capture a larger share of the Bangladesh market.
The Canadian High Commissioner thanked the importers as well as CanCham Bangladesh for the meeting. He stressed the importance of networking among exporters, importers and traders. He called upon the importers to keep in touch.

Mortoza Tarafder, director, Saskatchewan Trade and Export Promotion, Canada spoke about Canadian agriculture and its market around the world.