On December 17, Ambassador Michael D. Kirby visited the Hera company, a family owned business producing frozen baked goods, and met with its owners Vesna and Zoran Jevtović. Thanks to its collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.S. Embassy, the company has been able to acquire required certification, expand its markets and increase exports. In September 2015, Hera began exporting its products to the U.S. market.

Hera was a beneficiary of the former USAID Agribusiness Project under which it received significant marketing and technical assistance. This included support allowing it to adopt international standards (halal certification and ISO 22000), re-brand its corporate image (packaging redesign), and participate in international trade fairs.

In addition, during an 2014 International Visitors Leadership program (IVLP) study tour organized by the U.S. Embassy, the company met a U.S.- based importer and successfully negotiated the export of its traditional Serbian frozen “burek” with cheese and spinach to the United States. The U.S.-based importer is a distributor of Balkan products in New York and nationwide through ethnic shops which sells brand-namefood products from the region.