3.5 Colombia Food and Additional Suppliers

Overview

Animal protein, fruits, vegetables and dairy products are mainly consumed by the population in Colombia. Most consumed staple foods are corn, wheat, rice and beans, wich are mostly produced locally. The country is self-sufficient to produce its own food. However, despite being a food-producing country, household food basket cost is too high compared to that of other countries in the region.

Food supply market is large in the country from wholesale markets to local markets in cities and neighborhoods, offering a large variety of products for household food supply through segment retailers and supermarket chains offering domestic and imported products.

In the case of processed and unprocessed foods such as wheat flour, sugar, rice, corn and beans, respectively, private food manufacturers and traders can meet domestic requirements by either supplying domestic production or importing from neighboring countries, generally speaking.

In Colombia, food imports continue to increase. Most imported foods are corn, wheat and soybean cake accounting for 79.5% of the total volume of imports, which corresponds to about 3.6 million tons of food. Significant participation is also found for imported products such as palm oil, cane sugar, cooked vegetables, milk, soybean oil, barley and cotton. As for exports, most exported foods are edible fruits, especially bananas, avocados and gulupa (purple passion fruit), accounting for 34.6% of total food exports, followed by fats and oils for 20.4% and sugar and confectionery for 17%.

Three major economic sectors can be found in the country, which are grouped into specialized and independent activities. The first economic sector refers to the agricultural sector supplying the demand for products such as potatoes, cassava roots, yams, tubers, tropical fruits and most vegetables. According to agricultural census data, Colombia has 40 million hectares of agricultural frontier, of which only 19% is currently used so more than 32 million hectares are still available to be converted into agricultural production lines to dynamize the countryside. However, many factors can affect productivity, such as the availability and access to certified seeds, few and costly sources of credit, poor technical support, production in marginal land for cultivation, insufficient storage infrastructure and limited market development.

The second sector is industry, which includes activities such as construction, one of the fastest-growing activities that has led the industry sector to be dynamic and superior compared to other important sectors in the country, such as mining and services.

The third sector is the service sector standing out for their contribution to the economy, in which the hospitality and tourism industry, transportation services, communications services, financial services, utility services and health promoting entities are the most representative sectors.

3.5.1 Colombia Food Suppliers

Overview
DIANA CORPORACIÓN S.A.S.
FLORHUILA S.A.
SU DESPENSA
Retail Sector
ALMACENES ÉXITO S.A.
TIENDAS ARA

Overview

The food industry can be classified into perishable and non-perishable foods; i) perishable foods are mainly fruits and vegetables grown or harvested in different agricultural areas of the country, which are picked and transported to the main food supply centers in major cities to be sold to retail or institutional channels. ii) non-perishable foods are products that have been processed to some degree including grains, dairy products, sugars, canned goods, meat products, etc., which are either produced locally or imported by large food manufacturers or wholesalers, respectively, using different distribution channels.

The main food distribution channels are food manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers.

Food manufacturers: These produce and sell their products through wholesalers, distributors and institutional channels.
Wholesalers: They sell food in large volumes to retail or institutional channels, operate in the major cities and distribute products from several areas in large volumes and weights. Some wholesalers operate directly where different storage systems are located ("food supply centers"), from which institutional or retail marketing processes take place to distribute food products to all end consumers. These are known as:
Traditional food supply centers: They offer a variety of foods products including groceries, meats, vegetables, fruits and others. However, only a few of them have adequate infrastructure for the sale of these products.

Wholesalers: They offer wholesale food products, such as tubers, vegetables, fruits, legumes, etc.

Distributors: They sell different product lines and brands to different retail or institutional channels.

Retailers: This channel sells products to individual end customers through large supermarkets, micro markets, convenience stores, hard discounters and neighborhood stores. It is usually considered one of the most dynamic sectors of the Colombian economy. Sales in this sector accounted for $8.1 trillion in 2019, which represented an increase of 7.8% in sales during this period. Retailers sell products in small volumes to the general public, typically in a smaller space offering a variety of products. They are also known as small retailers. These markets have adequate infrastructure for this type of operation throughout the country.

Some suppliers are listed below:

DIANA CORPORACIÓN S.A.S.

Supplier Summary
Company Name	DIANA CORPORACIÓN S.A.S.
Physical Address	Carrera 13 No. 93 - 24 Bogotá D.C.
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company processes and packages grains directly at its production mills in Yopal, Casanare,Tolima and Huila. The company buys rice crops from Yopal and Tolima farmers.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	No, the supplier is a wholesaler that mainly supplies retail channels at the regional level. It also serves the institutional market.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes, the supplier has its own transportation capacity.
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes, the supplier owns its warehousing facilities.
Accepted forms of payment	Cash and credit for customers with financial capacity.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities**		Additional comments
00 - Live Animals (other than fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.)
01 - Meat and meat preparations
02 - Dairy products and poultry eggs
03 - Fish (other than marine animals), crustaceans, mollusks, etc.
04 - Cereals and cereal preparations	Rice and rice byproducts
05 - Vegetables and fruits
06 - Sugars, sugarcane byproducts and honey
07 - Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and derivatives
09 - Miscellaneous food products and derivatives
41 - Animal fats and oils
42/43 - Fixed, crude, refined or fractionated vegetable fats and oils	Oil and oil byproducts

FLORHUILA S.A.

Supplier Summary
Company Name	ARROZ FLORHUILA S.A.
Physical Address	Km 9 via Espinal, Tolima
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company processes and packages grains directly at its production mills in Tolima and Huila. The company buys rice crops from Espinal and Neiva farmers.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	No, the supplier is a wholesaler that mainly supplies retail channels at the regional level. It also serves the institutional market.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes, the supplier has its own transportation capacity.
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes, the supplier owns its warehousing facilities.
Accepted forms of payment	Cash and credit for customers with financial capacity.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities**		Additional comments
00 - Live Animals (other than fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.)
01 - Meat and meat preparations
02 - Dairy products and poultry eggs
03 - Fish (other than marine animals), crustaceans, mollusks, etc.
04 - Cereals and cereal preparations	Rice and rice byproducts
05 - Vegetables and fruits
06 - Sugars, sugarcane byproducts and honey
07 - Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and derivatives
09 - Miscellaneous food products and derivatives
41 - Animal fats and oils
42/43 - Fixed, crude, refined or fractionated vegetable fats and oils

SU DESPENSA

Company Name	SU DESPENSA
Physical Address	Corabastos, Warehouse 8 Store 2 Bogotá D.C.
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company processes and packages grains.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	No, the supplier is a wholesaler that mainly supplies retail channels at the regional level. It also serves the institutional market.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes, the supplier have its own transportation capacity.
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes, the supplier owns its warehousing facilities.
Accepted forms of payment	Cash and credit for customers with financial capacity.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities**		Additional comments
00 - Live Animals (other than fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.)
01 - Meat and meat preparations
02 - Dairy products and poultry eggs
03 - Fish (other than marine animals), crustaceans, mollusks, etc.
04 - Cereals and cereal preparations	Rice and rice byproducts
05 - Vegetables and fruits
06 - Sugars, sugarcane byproducts and honey
07 - Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and derivatives
09 - Miscellaneous food products and derivatives
41 - Animal fats and oils
42/43 - Fixed, crude, refined or fractionated vegetable fats and oils

Retail Sector

Type of retailers available:
Type of retailer:	Rank (1-5) - Relative rank for the type of retailer, where 1 is the most used by the population and 5 is the least used.
Supermarkets	1
Convenience stores/Mini-markets	4
Permanent stores with large supply capacity (grocery stores/neighborhood markets)	2
Permanent stores with limited supply capacity (neighborhood stores)	1
Mobile Shops/Market Stands: individual stores/family stores	3

In Colombia some retailers are supermarket chains such as Exito, Olímpica, Ara, Metro, Makro, Jumbo, etc., reflecting their solid market operation in the country.

Some suppliers are listed below:

ALMACENES ÉXITO S.A.

Company Name	ALMACENES ÉXITO S.A.
Physical Address	Main Office: Carrera 48 No. 32B Sur – 219 / Avenida Las Vegas, Envigado
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	No, the company is a food trading and retailing company. The company buys products directly from food wholesalers and manufacturers.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	Yes, the company has a supermarket chain.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes, the supplier has its own transportation capacity.
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes, the supplier owns its warehousing facilities.
Approximate turnover in metric tons	37,043 tons
Accepted forms of payment	Cash and credit for institutional clients with financial capacity.
Region	National Coverage

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities**		Additional comments
00 - Live Animals (other than fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.)
01 - Meat and meat preparations	Different cuts of beef
02 - Dairy products and poultry eggs	Packaged bakery products. Eggs of different sizes
03 - Fish (other than marine animals), crustaceans, mollusks, etc.	Canned fish, sardines, tuna fish	Local and imported products
04 - Cereals and cereal preparations	Rice, pasta	Local and imported production
05 - Vegetables and fruits	Variety of fruits and vegetables
06 - Sugars, sugarcane byproducts and honey	White and brown sugar	Local and imported production
07 - Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and derivatives	Coffee, coconut, cocoa derivatives	Local and imported production
09 - Miscellaneous food products and derivatives	Diverse branded processed foods; dairy products
41 - Animal fats and oils	Diverse branded processed foods; oil
42/43 - Fixed, crude, refined or fractionated vegetable fats and oils	Soybean, canola and sunflower oil	Local and imported production

TIENDAS ARA

Other location(s)
Company Name	TIENDAS ARA
Physical Address	Main Offices: Calle 100 No 7-33, Floor 11, Capital Tower building, Bogotá.
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	No, the company is a food trading and retailing company. The company buys products directly from food wholesalers and manufacturers.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	Yes, the company has its own supermarket chain.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes, the supplier has its own transportation capacity.
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes, the supplier owns its warehousing facilities.
Approximate turnover in metric tons	29,043 tons
Accepted forms of payment	Cash and credit for institutional clients with financial capacity.
Region	National coverage

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities**		Additional comments
00 - Live Animals (other than fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.)
01 - Meat and meat preparations	Different cuts of beef
02 - Dairy products and poultry eggs	Packaged bakery products. Eggs of different sizes
03 - Fish (other than marine animals), crustaceans, mollusks, etc.	Canned fish, sardines, tuna fish	Local and imported products
04 - Cereals and cereal preparations	Rice, pasta	Local and imported production
05 - Vegetables and fruits	Variety of fruits and vegetables
06 - Sugars, sugarcane byproducts and honey	White and brown sugar	Local and imported production
07 - Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and derivatives	Coffee, coconut, cocoa derivatives	Local and imported production
09 - Miscellaneous food products and derivatives	Diverse branded processed foods; dairy products
41 - Animal fats and oils	Diverse branded processed foods; oil
42/43 - Fixed, crude, refined or fractionated vegetable fats and oils	Soybean, canola and sunflower oil	Local and imported production

Disclaimer: Provider registration shall not imply any business relationship between the provider and PMA/Logistics Cluster and be solely used as a determinant of services and capabilities. Please note, PMA/Logistics Cluster shall maintain impartiality at all times and not be in a position to endorse any comments on the suitability of any company as a reputable service provider.

3.5.2 Colombia Additional Suppliers

Overview
Wholesale - Panamericana Outsourcing
Wholesale - Varquímica
Wholesale - Grupo Cenagro S.A.S.
Wholesale - Ducol

Overview

Colombia is classified as a middle-income country according to the World Bank classification, with a free market economy in which some sectors are subject to controlled freedom so that supply and demand forces can be kept in balance and the government can apply economic measures to achieve balance and correct any distortions whenever they occur.

The companies with the greatest share in Colombian market are hydrocarbon, construction, hypermarkets, chain stores and food processing companies, among others.

The current national market responds to specific trade requirements thanks to the agreements entered into by Colombia and its geographical position. The country has become a strategic production and distribution center for international markets. However, Colombian businesses are faced with various barriers such as exchange rate variations, high logistics and raw material costs, lack of infrastructure, high competition, smuggling and financial costs and taxes.

The following are some of the main economic sectors in Colombia according to activity branch:

Agricultural Sector: This sector includes all economic activities related to the obtention of goods and products directly from nature. That is, these are "direct" products without any processing. Agriculture is the main activity in this sector which is defined as the set of knowledge and tools necessary to obtain vegetable products through farming.

Industrial Sector: This sector is mainly characterized by all industrial processes intended to process raw materials obtained from the agricultural sector. After processing, the final product is consumable. This sector includes economic activities such as mining, textile industries, etc.

Transportation Sector: This sector covers goods mobilization and passenger transportation services, including cabs and special passenger services.

Financial Sector: This sector ensures a secure money flow in the country by channeling resources from those who have an economic surplus to those who need money for financing. Transactions and trading are some of the activities of this sector.

Trade Sector: This sector has ranked fourth in GDP after agriculture, manufacturing and finance for the past 4 years. This economic sector groups companies for the sale and distribution of goods and products at the wholesale or retail level in shopping malls and market places, among others.

Construction Sector: This industry has been key to national economic development in recent years due to its growth. It is one of the most important and impactful sectors due to several factors, such as the quantity of labor hired, its connection with other sectors of the economy due to various supplies it demands, as well as its close ties with the construction of basic infrastructures, such as bridges, highways, ports, railroads, electric power plants, hydroelectric and thermoelectric power plants, among others. Half of the productive economic sectors are related to the construction sector as direct suppliers to a greater or lesser extent.

Communications Sector: This has been a dynamic sector in Colombia over the last years, ranking ninth in the list of most profitable economic activities contributing to the gross domestic product (GDP). The boom of telephone companies in Colombia is evident.

Some companies are listed below:

Wholesale - Panamericana Outsourcing

Supplier Summary
Company Name	PANAMERICANA OUTSOURCING
Physical Address	Calle 64 No. 93-95, Bogotá.
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company has its own production facilities in Colombia.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	Yes, the company has its own directly managed retail stores.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes
Approximate turnover in metric tons or USD	N/A
Accepted forms of payment	Credits, cash
Other remarks or key information	Colombian company with 39 retail stores nationwide specialized in providing companies with outsourcing services for cleaning, cafeteria, personal protection items, stationery, technology and office supplies.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities		Additional comments
24/27 - Non-food raw materials except fuel	N/A	N/A
51 to 59 - Chemical and related products	N/A	N/A
61 to 69 - Manufactured goods, mainly classified by material	N/A	N/A
71 to 79 - Machinery and transport equipment	N/A	N/A
81 to 89 - Miscellaneous manufactured articles	N/A	N/A
91/93/96/97 - Products not elsewhere classified	cleaning, cafeteria, personal protection items, stationery supplies, technology and office supplies.	Colombian production, stock is always available.

Wholesale - Varquímica

Supplier Summary
Company Name	VARQUIMICA S.A.S.
Physical Address	Carrera 73 No. 27 - 14, Bogotá
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company manufactures its own products.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	No, the company distributes its products to chain stores.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	No
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes
Approximate turnover in metric tons or USD	N/A
Accepted forms of payment	Credits
Other remarks or key information	Company dedicated to the production and sale of commercial cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting products in Colombia.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities		Additional comments
24/27 - Non-food raw materials except fuel	N/A	N/A
51 to 59 - Chemical and related products	Cleaners and disinfectants	Year-round domestic production and distribution
61 to 69 - Manufactured goods, mainly classified by material	N/A	N/A
71 to 79 - Machinery and transport equipment	N/A	N/A
81 to 89 - Miscellaneous manufactured articles	N/A	N/A
91/93/96/97 - Products not elsewhere classified	N/A	N/A

Wholesale - Grupo Cenagro S.A.S.

Supplier Summary
Company Name	GRUPO CENAGRO S.A.S.
Physical Address	Calle 14 # 27A – 156 Block 10, Warehouse 2 Arroyohondo Industrial Park, Yumbo, Valle
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company has its own production facilities in the country.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	The company has its own stores and also sells to wholesale distributors.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	Yes
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes
Approximate turnover in metric tons	N/A
Accepted forms of payment	Credits, cash
Other remarks or key information	Global fertilizer company for agricultural and livestock industry.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities		Additional comments
24/27 - Non-food raw materials except fuel	N/A	N/A
51 to 59 - Chemical and related products	Nutri-irrigation, Quelagros fertilizer Foliar bionutrition Biostimulation Soil bioconditioners Induced resistance Granular bionutrition	Year-round production in its own facilities
61 to 69 - Manufactured goods, mainly classified by material	N/A	N/A
71 to 79 - Machinery and transport equipment	N/A	N/A
81 to 89 - Miscellaneous manufactured articles	N/A	N/A
91/93/96/97 - Products not elsewhere classified	N/A	N/A

Wholesale - Ducol

Supplier Summary
Company Name	DUCOL S.A.S.
Physical Address	Cra. 14 No. 99 - 33, Bogotá
Does the supplier have its own production capacity?	Yes, the company has its own production facilities.
Does the supplier have its own retail sales channel?	The company has its own stores and also sells to wholesale distributors.
Does the supplier have its own transportation capacity?	No, transportation is mostly outsourced.
Does the supplier own warehousing facilities?	Yes
Approximate turnover in USD	N/A
Accepted forms of payment	Credits
Other remarks or key information	This company is mainly dedicated to the design, production, supply and installation of modular office systems.

Main goods/products available
Type of commodities		Additional comments
24/27 - Non-food raw materials except fuel	N/A	N/A
51 to 59 - Chemical and related products	N/A	N/A
61 to 69 - Manufactured goods, mainly classified by material	N/A	N/A
71 to 79 - Machinery and transport equipment	N/A	N/A
81 to 89 - Miscellaneous manufactured articles	Manufacture, supply and installation of modular office furniture	Year-round production
91/93/96/97 - Products not elsewhere classified	N/A	N/A