Maine business delegation continues to pitch Cuba on exports

A group of Maine business representatives recently returned from Cuba as part of an effort to open export opportunities for small businesses.

The trip to Havana, which took place from January 8 to 9, was organized by Doyle Merchant, president of Cedar Spring Agricultural Company in Yarmouth, in collaboration with the Cuban Ministry of Agriculture and Grupo Agricole. It was held as part of the Cuba Business Forum.

Speakers from Maine promoted export opportunities and presented the following topics:

• Frederick Lipp, a shareholder at Bernstein Schur, Maine’s largest law firm, spoke about strategies for small businesses in Cuba.
• Janine Basilone-Carey, a former Maine International Trade Center employee and president of the Montserrat Group, a business consulting group in Portland, talked about the “go-to-market” component.
• Mary Allen Lindemann, president and owner of Portland-based Coffee by Design, led a talk on coffee as a “catalyst for change.”

This forum was developed to help a growing group of new Cuban entrepreneurs pursue international business with U.S. companies. The sale of food and other agricultural products is authorized by the U.S. Treasury, according to a news release.

Cuba’s legislative legislation, codified in 2021, offers entrepreneurs, from sole traders to companies with 100 employees, the opportunity to develop and grow their businesses in Cuba. This Decree developed a framework for Cuban companies to register as a “Society of Reasonability Limited,” a designation similar to corporate formations in other countries.

New regulations will allow entrepreneurs to enter into permanent contracts for trade and markets in goods.

“By removing the bureaucratic challenges for governments as buyers, this new initiative will enable market forces to improve the development of the Maine-Cuba trade,” Merchant said.

Merchant has a history of working for more than 20 years to bring Maine products to Cuba. In 2023, the Cuban Ministry of Agriculture asked Mr. Marchant to chair the development of a business forum to help educate new owners of small and medium-sized businesses on important aspects of international business. Speakers were invited based on their specific areas of expertise: entrepreneurship, international business, and communications.

In 2022, Merchant formed a similar delegation with representatives from the fishing and agriculture industries, with the goal of developing an export pipeline for Maine production to the island nation.

Ramiro Triana Abreu of Havana helped coordinate the details with Cuban ministry officials.