Foods From Chile, Source of Life

Chile's geography, climate and people give it a unique character and provide it with incomparable conditions for producing food whose quality and attributes are appreciated around the world.

Chilean food products come from a fertile and generous land with its own distinctive identity. Ancestral wisdom is combined with modern processes and technologies to preserve and enhance the purity, freshness and healthiness of the food.

These are the characteristics that the government and local producers have sought to highlight in the new international campaign Foods from Chile, Source of Life.

In November, Washington hosted one of the campaign's most important activities to date: the second Chef’s Challenge organized by ProChile and RAMW.

Six acclaimed chefs and four award-winning mixologists faced off at the National Restaurant Association during a competition that tested their skills and creativity. Each had to prepare the best possible dishes and cocktails using Chilean ingredients available in the U.S. market, including salmon, olive oil, pisco, wine and merkén, a smoked chile pepper condiment.

The competition offered an excellent opportunity to show the U.S. public the five attributes that make Chile a supplier of healthy products that meet the highest international quality standards:

-Innocuity: Natural phytosanitary barriers, such as the Andes Mountains, Pacific Ocean, Atacama Desert and southern ice fields isolate Chilean food products, keeping them free from pests and diseases.

-Quality: Chile's geography and climate, together with the experience and professionalism of its producers make it a source of food products that are world renowned for their quality.

-International guarantee: Appreciated and recognized in international markets. Thanks to its attributes and long track record in international trade, Chile is able to provide guarantees for its products.

-Traceability: Chilean producers monitor the entire production process in accordance with strict quality standards and are therefore able to offer certified products.

-Natural flavor: Purity and freshness of origin. Chile’s climatic and geographic conditions, such as very warm summers, cool winters and mineral-rich soils, make its food products a source of life.

Last year, Chile was the leading supplier of fresh salmon, trout, grapes, berries and apples and frozen fruit and vegetables to the U.S. market.  The U.S. is currently the most important market for Chilean food products, with sales reaching US$3.9 billion in 2014, up 9.2% over 2013.

In 2016, Chilean food promotion activities will focus on the U.S. market so that more and more chefs, importers, distributors and consumers can appreciate their flavor, quality and health benefits.