Funded by the Pork Checkoff, the three-day training event reached more than 50 sales representatives, managers and directors of meat importing companies and foodservice enterprises in the Mexico City region.

"The purpose of this activity was to increase US pork sales by our commercial trade partners by educating them about the characteristics of US pork products they offer to their clients," explained Oscar Ferrara, USMEF regional director for Mexico, Central America and the Dominican Republic.

"Also, this seminar provided training for negotiation techniques to expand the skill levels of those working in sales. Giving them a background on the value and quality of US pork, along with advice on selling products – that’s a strong combination."

The first day of the seminar was focused on traditional sales channels, while on the second day trainers passed on helpful information on foodservice sales. The third and final day centered on telephone sales.

In another important aspect of the seminar, ITESM professors offered participants advice on negotiation and sales techniques to increase the level of successful transactions.

A USMEF seminar in Mexico City helped train sales representatives of meat import companies about the quality and value of US pork [Photo: USMEF]

For the product information portions of the seminar, USMEF had a nutritionist from Mexico’s Centro de Orientación Alimentaria talk not only about the nutritional attributes of US pork for human health, but also about its great flavor and quality.