A new division of Government that will deal with imports and exports is in the works, as the ‘Buy Samoa Made’ brand is developed with a focus on earning American dollars from Hawai’i, American Samoa and the continental U.S. markets. 

The establishment of an Import and Export Authority was revealed during an interview with the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Laauli Leuatea Schmidt.

“The initiative of the Import and Export Authority is to help exporters, to assist them with promoting their products,” Laauli told the Samoa Observer.

Business owners who export deal with a myriad of formalities: there are negotiations, freight costs, duty fees and quarantine requirements, to name a few.

Help from Government will make it easier for businesses to export, said Laauli.

“It is difficult. But if they are endorsed by government, it make it easier for local businesses to export,” he said.

For now, the M.A.F. has begun to promote ‘Buy Samoa Made’ – the new brand for all products made in Samoa.

The brand or label will also be used to promote products from the Scientific Research Organisation of Samoa (S.R.O.S.). Among the S.R.O.S. products is a taro ethanol hand sanitiser. 

“The main purpose of this is promotions. We are going to make a brand, new branding for all our produce – whatever comes out of Samoa…we are going to call it Buy Samoa Made,” Laauli said.

“We will also use this brand to promote the products from S.R.O.S.”

More than 100 containers of fresh and frozen taro are currently being exported, to New Zealand, Australia and the United States.

Consumers can expect to start seeing the ‘Buy Samoa Made’ labels on taro packaging.

“The frozen taro will have new packaging using this brand,” said Laauli.

“Right now we are exporting a lot of taro but we also want to export ufi (yams), manioka (cassava), coconuts and koko Samoa, even our bottled water, whatever we can export.”

Laauli has begun gauging the interest for local produce and other products made in Samoa through his Facebook page.

The response has been incredible, he said. 

“We have begun to trial and it is being promoted from my page…to try and test and see the response. When we publicised it wow!" said Laauli.

"The amount of people who are interested at the consumer level and people are interested at the wholesaler or distributor level, it’s incredible.

“This is really good and this is what we need to know – the interest of our people out there.”

The Faatuatua i le Atua Samoa us Tasi (F.A.S.T.) party has been promoting an export and import authority according to the party's founder.

“That is the aim of this an import and export authority, to mainly push whatever commodities we have as far as agricultural produce, whatever we have available at the moment…there are more than 100 containers being exported per year which is good.”

Social media will play a major role in the ‘Buy Samoa Made’ campaign. There are plans to launch additional pages that will track containers so buyers will know when a shipment leaves Samoa, its location en route and when the container arrives at its destination.

“This new branding is so all our people will know where to find our products,” said Laauli.

“Our target markets are first, Hawai’i, all of America and beginning in American Samoa because of the currency. We are aiming for U.S. dollars.”