This is a best prospect industry sector for this country. Includes a market overview and trade data.
Last Published: 3/1/2019

Overview

Benin does not produce sufficient foodstuffs for its population domestically and relies on imported foods and agricultural products to make up the difference.  Most of Benin’s production of food items is in subsistence farming, so only a small % of food production makes its way to the market.  Benin is a transshipment hub for agricultural cargo destined for Benin’s neighbors, especially the large Nigerian market, due to relatively rapid processing of goods at the port of Cotonou and relatively good road conditions and security.  An estimated 90 percent of rice and frozen poultry imported through the Port of Cotonou is sent onward to landlocked Niger or to western Nigeria. The U.S. Bureau of the Census data on direct imports of U.S. agricultural and related products into Benin indicates a drop from USD 36.86 million in 2015 to 19.42 million in 2016.

 

(In thousands of dollars)2014201520162017 (Estimated)
Total Local ProductionNANANANA
Total Exports or Re-exportsNANA109,880NA
Total Imports  109,877NA
Imports from the US
 		48,30336,86719,420 
Total Market Size    
Exchange Rates:USD1.00= FCFA 560USD1.00= FCFA 560USD1.00= FCFA 560 

 








 



(total market size = (total local production + imports) - exports)
Sources: U.S. Bureau of the Census Data and Benin Institute of Statistics and Economic Analysis. Leading Sub-Sectors
Among the best prospects for U.S. agricultural exports to Benin are rice, poultry, meat, wheat, corn, soybeans, canned fruits and vegetables, tomato sauce/ketchup, vegetable oil, fruit juices, pasta, wine and other spirits, powdered milk, energy drinks, mayonnaise, and snack foods.  These compete with similar products from Europe and Asia.

Opportunities

Importers take advantage of Nigeria’s high tariffs and porous borders to informally re-export rice, poultry products, and other food and agricultural products to Nigeria.  Trade sources estimate that more than 90 percent of Benin’s imports of these types of products are meant for onward sales into Nigeria through informal cross-border trading activities.  However, economic sluggishness and a depreciated currency in Nigeria severely impacted the pace of re-export from Benin in 2016 and 2017.

Web Resources

https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/product/enduse/exports/c7610.html
http://www.insae-bj.org/
Jude E. Akhidenor
USDA/Foreign Agricultural Service
U.S. Consulate General, Lagos, Nigeria
 
D/L: +234-1-460-3577Email:  Jude.Akhidenor@fas.usda.gov

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