The institutional delegation of Lanzarote, headed by the president of the Cabildo, Oswaldo Betancort, the president of the Chamber of Commerce, José Valle, the CEO of the Art, Culture and Tourism Centers, Ángel Vázquez, and the CEO of SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, Héctor Fernández, has made progress in positioning the Island in the HEB supermarket chain, a benchmark in the southern United States and Mexico, as a platform for the marketing of its gourmet products.
This boost materialized during the visit to one of the HEB surfaces in San Antonio, together with the delegation of local producers, within the framework of the official mission that started in New York with high-level meetings with the Consulate of Spain, Turespaña and the Spain-USA Chamber of Commerce, in order to provide advice to companies that aspire to make the leap to the American market.
President Oswaldo Betancort has stated that “this step is the opportunity of a generation to grow, generate employment in our families and take the Lanzarote brand to the world with the help of our best ambassadors: local producers.”
For José Valle, president of the Chamber of Commerce, the commercial mission to the USA "reflects once again the effectiveness of the public-private collaboration promoted by the Cabildo of Lanzarote. We are also backed by a unique historical link with San Antonio, in force since 1731, which opens doors and generates trust in our commercial relations.”
Island producers on the mission
The Lanzarote companies participating in this mission -Bernardo’s Gourmet Products, Bodega El Jable de Tao, Bodega La Geria, Bodega Vega de Yuco, Quesería El Faro, Salinas de Janubio and Sweetba- presented their offer of wines, cheeses, jams, mojos, salts, aloe and pastries in Texas.
“Our products can be positioned in a chain like HEB opens the door to an immense market. For a family business like ours, this means ensuring the future of our workers and our cultural and gastronomic legacy,” said Carlos Padrón, director of Salinas de Janubio.
For his part, Marco Taborra, export manager of Bernardo’s Gourmet Products, added: “We always dreamed of seeing our products on the shelves of the United States. This positioning confirms that the quality and authenticity of Lanzarote have a place on the international table.”
The day was completed with the professional and commercial forum “Lanzarote 360º-Texas 2025”, held at the Hotel Thompson San Antonio Riverwalk, where producers, importers, exporters and local businessmen from the culinary sector shared presentations, tastings, product tastings and networking spaces to open new opportunities.
Lanzarote 360 has been carried out together with the Art, Culture and Tourism Centers (CACT), SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote and the renowned local chef Sergio Remolina, as a continuation of the visit that the president and the companies of Lanzarote made in 2024 together with the Government of Spain within the framework of “Spain Fusión”.
During the last 12 months, the Cabildo, through Economic Promotion, SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, Art, Culture and Tourism Centers, Chamber of Commerce and Proexca-Government of the Canary Islands, has accompanied companies and producers of the island in procedures to apply for FDA licenses and permits in the United States, and build bridges with the main importers and distributors in Texas, in order to reinforce Lanzarote's internationalization strategy, consolidating its presence in the United States, both in the tourism field and in the commercial promotion of its most emblematic products.