The very fact that he sees the Ecuadorian flag in another country is likely to be overwhelmed with nostalgia, in addition to being far from his family, he misses several things, including products that were common to find in the neighborhood store or in supermarkets, and that now, since he thousands of kilometers away, he misses them.

And perhaps this longing made the compatriots go to the places near where they live in search of some of these products and encounter a great variation in prices.

At prices ranging from 69 cents to more than $30, Ecuadorian products are sold in supermarkets in the United States

While in Ecuador a case of 1,000 grams of yellow Maizabrosa is priced at $1.93, in the same presentation in the United States the price is $5.99; a liter of La Favorita achiote here costs $4.35 compared to $8.99; Margarine La Favorita of 240 grams $0.79, and outside the country $1.99; Tony’s Oatmeal Drink 250ml with Naranjilla, $0.79, While I’m Away, $1.29; or a 100-gram chocolate bar from La Universal costs 1.34 to 1.79 dollars here.

At first perception, the costs of these products and others that companies import or export to the United States are high compared to those in Ecuador, however, several factors must be considered in this cost difference, among them logistics, payment of exit taxes and customs clearance at destination, lack of tariff preferences, according to Cynthia Mayer, CEO of Family Food Ecuador, an Ecuadorian company founded in 2002 that distributes Ecuadorian, Costa Rican, Salvadoran and Guatemalan products to approximately 16 North American countries, reaching them directly and indirectly through affiliated distributors , with which between eight and ten other countries are covered.

Family Food Ecuador has 1105 products in its catalog, of which about 600 are Ecuadorian. Among its segments, one is called ‘nostalgia’, in which it attracts people to go, recognize the product and, even if they are elsewhere, decide to buy it. They currently have four distribution centers, the main one being in New Jersey. In 2021, they opened in Chicago, months later in Massachusetts, and this 2023, at the end of February, they opened in Florida.

Mayer indicates that it is cost of logistics This has a significant impact on the final cost of the product, as the value of customs clearance must be paid at origin, then freight, insurance, and then customs clearance at destination. To this are added the transfer values ​​from the port to the final warehouse.

“These are very high costs. Literally, the freight from the port to the final warehouse is only slightly lower than the sea freight from Ecuador to New York or to Miami,” he says, adding that, for example, the cost of fuel in the USA is higher than here in Ecuador, where it is subsidized by the state.

The crabs go from Naranjal and Balao to the United States, where a pack of 14 sells for between $50 and $75

Another factor to consider, according to Mayer, is that Ecuador “does not have any type of tariff preference, nor does it have an agreement or trade agreement with the United Stateswhich means that the products pay customs duties at the time of customs clearance at the destination”.

“We also have a serious problem here because it is actually the importer who has to bear all the cost of bringing them from Ecuador, who does not pay for them if he brings them from Colombia, Costa Rica or Peru, because they really already have their own agreements,” he assures.

To put this into perspective, he comments that if he reaches $10,000 in merchandise, he has to pay $3,500 in customs to remove that product. “So all of that also automatically increases the cost of the product,” he says.

Ecuador exports more shellfish than crab in 2023 due to interest from Hong Kong buyers

As another factor, Mayer points out that it should be recognized a cost that the factory must be able to comply with the regulations Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which requires special packaging for export, which is not the same for the local market.

There is also the issue of quality certificates – he says – they are very important because this is what gives peace of mind that biological safety, traceability, product safety issues are fulfilled and with that you can go and sell in supermarkets.

The added value makes the difference

Despite these obstacles for Ecuador, Mayer points out that a factor in favor is that the more we can “differentiate” or the products have added value, the more this price variation is worth to the end consumer.

The United States is Ecuador’s second non-oil export destination, with $1.744 million from January to May this year, according to a report from the Ministry of Production, Foreign Trade, Investments and Fisheries.

He points out that the leading products coming from Ecuador are: oils, cookies and dairy products, in that order. They distribute products of brands such as Nestlé, La Favorita, ILE, Grupo Superior, Oriental, La Universal, among others.

Annatto and tuna are some of the products that can be found on the supermarket shelves. Photo: Courtesy of Family Food Ecuador

According to the general director of Family Food Ecuador, the products are preferred not only by Ecuadorians, but also by Latin Americans in general, and milk drinks, tuna and sardines, cookies, desserts, and oils stand out. Chili sauces, different types of vegetables and candied or pickled fruit, such as chocos, which is “a product that sells very well”, he says, are added to them.

Malaysia and Indonesia are growing as destinations for Ecuadorian cocoa, which requires government support to improve competitiveness and safety

Frozen, according to Mayer, is a segment that grows year by year, and frozen vegetables, cassava bread, humitas, empanadas of all kinds, fanesca, etc. stand out. “We have developed products that may not be available on the local market, but we are developing them for export market in the United States, depending on the time of year,” he claims, citing as an example fanescu, where they produce a mixture of frozen vegetables such as pumpkin, beans, etc.