City Foods, Inc., dba Bea’s Best, produces and distributes a full line of premium raw and cooked deli meats. Based in Chicago, Illinois, the company has been in business for over 80 years and is known for its soy-, allergen-, and gluten-free meat products. For more than 25 years, City Foods has exported salted meats in pails to markets in the Caribbean, Central and South America, the Middle East, and beyond.
Since 2008, City Foods has participated in several Food Export-Midwest programs to expand its global brand presence.
Over the past sixteen years, the company has achieved numerous export successes—primarily through participation in Buyers Missions and the Market Access Program funded, cost-share Branded Program. Below are two recent highlights.
On July 27, 2023, City Foods attended Food Export-Midwest’s Midwest Buyers Mission, where they met with seven international buyers. Buyers from Saudi Arabia and Colombia showed strong interest in the promoted meat products, resulting in sales of $230,000 to Saudi Arabia and $20,000 to Colombia.
Later that year, the company leveraged the Market Access Program-funded Branded Program to build on the connections made during the Buyers Mission. Using the program, City Foods conducted product demonstrations, updated packaging and labeling, created promotional materials, and enhanced its international website to strengthen relationships with both Saudi Arabia and Colombia.
“It was a very successful Buyers Mission,” said Scott Weiss, Sales Director. “As a result, City Foods increased export business and brand awareness, overcame tariff restraints, and is developing additional products for Saudi Arabia.”
In 2024, City Foods again participated in the Branded Program to grow brand awareness in the Caribbean, Central America, and Middle East markets. The company used its allocated funds for label modifications, in-store promotions and demos, advertising, and covering freight costs for product samples.
These efforts led to export sales of:
Additionally, City Foods projects the following export sales over the next 12 months:
Since 2009, City Foods has participated in a wide range of Food Export-Midwest services and activities, including the Branded Program, Webinars, Online Product Catalog, Trade Leads, Focused Trade Missions, Buyers Missions, and U.S. FoodLink.
Food Export uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) to help America’s small businesses increase their exports of food and agricultural products. As these exports increase, these small businesses are creating jobs and improving the strength and stability of our agricultural economy. Food Export-Midwest and Food Export-Northeast are non-profit organizations that work in collaboration with their member state departments of agriculture and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. They offer a wide range of programs and services that help boost America’s agricultural exports.
Increased export sales to multiple markets
New Buyers Mission contacts & sales gained
16 Years of participation in Food Export programs
