Tamaulipas wants to put more of its products on Texas shelves

REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — Tamaulipas is preparing dozens of local businesses to sell their products in Texas, part of a state effort to help smaller companies navigate the complicated process of entering the U.S. market.

So far, 60 companies from 18 municipalities have registered for “De Tamaulipas para Texas,” a free export-readiness program that will train businesses on everything from U.S. labeling and certification requirements to pricing, logistics and negotiations.

Most are starting from scratch. Of the 60 participating companies, 57 reported having no previous export experience.

The state’s eventual goal is to position 100 Tamaulipas products in the Texas market.

“We want exporting to stop being seen as an opportunity exclusive to large companies,” Tamaulipas Economy Secretary Ninfa Cantú Deándar said. “In Tamaulipas, we have products with quality, identity and potential to compete.”

Food producers lead the way

Food companies make up more than half of the businesses currently participating in the program.

Thirty-four, or nearly 57%, are food businesses. The program also includes six agroindustrial companies, six industrial businesses, four craft producers, three cosmetics companies, three textile businesses, two beverage companies, one service company and one wine and spirits business.

Several participating companies are based just across the border from the Rio Grande Valley.

Reynosa has 11 registered businesses, the second-highest number behind Ciudad Victoria’s 17. Matamoros has seven, while two businesses each are participating from Río Bravo and Valle Hermoso.

Other participants come from communities across the state, including Nuevo Laredo, Tampico, Ciudad Madero, El Mante and San Fernando.

The program builds on Tamaulipas’ existing “Hecho en Tamaulipas” initiative, which promotes locally made products and connects businesses with buyers and retail opportunities within Mexico. The new program is designed to take that strategy across the border.

Getting businesses ready for the U.S.

For companies with no export experience, getting a product onto a Texas shelf involves considerably more than finding a retailer willing to sell it.

Participating businesses will undergo three months of online training and technical assistance covering export pricing, logistics, negotiations, invoicing, certifications, labeling and regulatory compliance.

Companies will also receive business assessments, specialized consulting, help developing an export plan and market information.

Those requirements can be particularly significant for food producers, which may need to meet additional labeling, certification and sanitary requirements before their products can enter the United States.

The program is intended to determine which companies have products with export potential and help them address what is needed to compete in the U.S. market.

Texas retailers identified as potential connections

Tamaulipas has identified several companies with Texas operations as potential commercial connections for businesses that make it through the process, including H-E-B, Stripes, MexMart, La Michoacana and Valero.

Those companies are not confirmed customers, however, and the state has not announced supply agreements between the retailers and participating businesses.

Instead, the program is preparing Tamaulipas companies to eventually pursue relationships with buyers and distributors in Texas.

For the 57 participants that have never exported, that means the immediate task isn’t getting onto a store shelf. It’s learning how to meet U.S. requirements well enough to compete for that opportunity.

Registration for “De Tamaulipas para Texas” remains open through Sept. 20 to businesses from across Tamaulipas, including companies that do not currently export.

Whether the effort succeeds will ultimately depend on how many participants make the jump from training to actual sales in Texas.

For now, Tamaulipas has 60 businesses working toward that possibility — and a target of getting 100 of the state’s products across the border and into the Texas market.