Export Business

[ibarnon]

I am thinking of trying to export items from here to the United States such as raw coffee beans and other crops. Does anyone here have experience with this type of business?

Do you know of any contacts whom I can talk to and get more information? Thanks in advance.

[costaricafinca]

‘Raw’ coffee beans must be processed within 24 hours of picking, so that’s a bust! However, processed but not roasted is a different scenario. Many companies do it.
Other flowers and/or fruit have to be inspected thoroughly, and if ‘anything’ is found, you may be fined. This is allowed twice, then you may not be allowed to export again.

[sprite]

As a US Customs broker, I can tell you the very first thing you want to do is contact the FDA. There is a protocol for importing food and drink. Exporters and importers have to register with the FDA at which point FDA registration and PIN numbers are issued to either the importer or exporter. The import must also be reported to the FDA/US CUSTOMS prior to arrival at which point a prior notification number is issued for that particular shipment.

Broker fees will be in the range of $100 to $200 and if you do not have a Customs bond, one will have to be issued. The bond will be for three times the value of the goods and the charge is usually around $35 to $45 per $10,000 value of the bond; thus a $20,000 import will cost you about $240 for the single entry bond.

Edited on Jul 19, 2008 13:43

[ibarnon]

Thanks for the replies.

Sprite,

Are you still a customer’s broker? How hard is it to get into the import/export business? Would you happen to know of any exporters local here in Costa Rica who I can get more information.

ibarnon

[sprite]

I am still licensed but have recently been focusing on another avenue of income generation (stock market). However, I still have access to much the info you would need as far as the US Customs documentation.

I no longer have the contact info for the few small Costa Rican businesses for whom I did some work. My impression is that perishable export/import business it is not easy money. As in all businesses, there is a risk to reward ratio to consider. Perishable imports are sometimes completely lost due to insects found by Agriculture inspections or other problems discovered by FDA.Depending on what merchandise you are working with, there are labeling regulations, quotas, smokehouse inspections, temperature controls and always basic customs and other agency regulations to consider.

Before you do anything, talk to someone who does this successfully. Get all your duckies in a row before committing capital.

[costaricafinca]

Ditto, ditto, ditto….

[ibarnon]

Sprite,

Thanks again for your reply. I’m always a believer that nothing is easy, if it is then everyone would be doing it.

Are you in the central valley? I’m in the Escazu area and if you have some time, maybe we can meet up somewhere. Anyway, if its possible and you have some time, let me know.
My email is ibarnon@hotmail.com

Costaricafinca,

do you have any experience exporting to the US? Thanks.

Edited on Jul 22, 2008 01:07

[costaricafinca]

I was part of a flower exporting company and saw the problems that went with that, transportation, increasing problems with Agriculture inspections, etc.
We also owned a coffee farm, but sold to one of the large companies.
I have a friend who had looked into exporting coffee beans, but you need to go through one of the companies that already offers processing, etc. Then, of course, the price goes up.
I will contact him.

[sprite]

I am still in Miami and anxiously looking forward to moving to my property down there but that may not be for a few years more. Otherwise, it would have been enjoyable to meet someone who has the energy and impetus to start up a business. If you do decide to go forward, I can give you specific information regards the customs clearance procedures.

[crhomebuilder]

Many folks have said that timing is important to the success of a business. Exporting coffee beans and other crops is hardly a new concept and the existing companies in that market are strong.

According to yesterdays La Nacion, imports during the past 12 months surpassed $14.6 million while exports during the same period amounted to only $9.6 million. The difference between the two figures accounts for the deficit in the trade balance, which over the past 12 months reached $5 billion, an increase of 56% over the last year.
http://www.nacion.com/ln_ee/2008/julio/22/economia1630099.html

The export business is probably a tough market to enter at this point. However, energetic entrepreneurs are rarely deterred by realistic advice. You may want to conduct some research at, http://www.american.edu/TED/coffee.htm and http://www.lucidcafe.com/cafebystate/crforum.html#exporters. Good luck!

[ibarnon]

Thanks for the link, crbuilder. I did read about that in La Nacion last Tuesday. Doesn’t surprise me that imports are much bigger than exports. Very few things here are made in CR. Its just an idea that I’m wondering how feasible. I’ve previously been able to import (only once) a shipment to the US, but I used a customs broker and it seems expensive what they charge me. It was also not a food product and the shipment was only a partial of a container. I will definitely do more study, and hopefully find somebody that is doing or have done something similar.

Sprite, how much does a typical customs broker charge for a shipment? I just thought that their fees of almost $700 was a bit high.

[sprite]

I charged $95 for the clearance and $85 or the FDA interface work. I charged $40 per $10,000 invoice value for the required Customs bond.

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