Framgångsfaktorer för svensk livsmedelsexport

I takt med att exporten av livsmedel från Sverige ökar, ökar också konkurrensen både nationellt och internationellt. För att livsmedelsföretag ska kunna satsa på rätt strategier och stärka sin marknadsposition är det viktigt att identifiera speciella och fördelaktiga egenskaper hos svenska livsmedelsprodukter. Examensarbetet syftar till att ringa in faktorer som gjort att tre framgångsrika företag lyckats med sin livsmedelsexport, samt undersöka betydelsen av att produkterna kommer från Sverige och bär svenska mervärden. Det empiriska materialet insamlades dels genom en intervjubaserad förstudie med representanter från LRF, Li och Food From Sweden och dels genom fallstudier av livsmedelsföretagen Ceba Foods AB, Gillebagaren AB och Wasabröd AB. Framgångsfaktorer som framkom i studien var bland annat att produkterna är unika, ligger i ändamålsenliga förpackningar, har lång hållbarhet och håller hög kvalitet. Två av fallföretagen ansåg att kontinuerlig bearbetning av importörer är viktigt. Skapande och underhållande av kontakter sker enligt studien med fördel på internationella livsmedelsmässor. De studerade företagen fastslog vidare att det ger ett visst mervärde att produkterna kommer från Sverige och innehåller svenska råvaror. Företagen ansåg emellertid inte att enskilda svenska mervärden, såsom miljöhänsyn, ger produkterna marknadsfördelar och utgör ej försäljningsargument på en exportmarknad. Intervjupersonerna i både förstudien och fallstudien framhöll istället att Sveriges "goda rykte" kan bidra till exportframgång. An English summary can be found in the beginning of the thesis.Swedish food manufacturers are exposed to increasingly difficult market conditions. Retailers are utilising private labels and importing food commodities at the expense of manufacturer brands. In this context industry figures claim that “export is a condition of the food industry’s growth and development in Sweden”1. The agricultural sector is in turn dependent on the ability of food manufacturers to remain competitive. Since the entry of Sweden into the EU, the local agriculture and food industry has performed competitively at an international level. The value of Swedish food imports is, however, almost double the value of what is being exported. Companies who dare to take risks may take advantage of opportunities to improve export performance and thereby afford themselves a better chance of survival in today’s global food market. An analysis of successful Swedish food exporters can perhaps provide an indication ’the right way to go’ by explaining which values and characteristics their products have. The aim of this master’s thesis is to identify, through use of qualitative interviews, both business and product related reasons for the export success enjoyed by three Swedish food manufacturers. Representatives from LRF, Li, and FFS together with the food manufacturers Ceba Food AB, Gillebagaren AB, and Wasabröd AB have taken part in the study. The study has identified several business practices that successful Swedish food export companies have in common. Firstly, the food products exported are unique on the export market. Secondly, exported products are not adapted significantly to the target market. Furthermore, the case study identifies that successful Swedish food export companies do not make extensive use of export promotion. Ceba Foods and Gillebagaren often identify desirable importers through international food fair participation. The study has also identified several product characteristics that the companies found important for their success: they are healthy, unique, have a long shelf life and are exported in well adapted packaging. All interviewed companies also considered the Swedish origin of the goods to be desirable. Both the pre-study and the case study indicated that Sweden’s favorable reputation when it comes to food is capable of assisting the commercial success of Swedish food exporters. This assistance is more noticeable in countries such as Germany with which Sweden has close economic and cultural ties. The above analysis supports the idea to market origin in countries which have a positive view of Swedish food. The Swedish origin of the products was also considered important because the raw materials used is of good quality here. The case companies, however, do not consider Swedish added values, such as environmentally friendly production, as market advantages. Consequently these added values do not constitute a sales argument in the export market