Latin America is a vast and developing market. That's why the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) and the Canning House, a top U.K. forum on Latin American politics, economics and business, believed that the growth of Scotch showed what other European businesses can achieve in the region.

During a Scotch Whisky Experience conference in Edinburgh earlier this month, the SWA and the Canning House explained the benefits of trading in Latin America. According to The Drinks Report, Colombia is working to promote exports and imports.

In addition, the four nations (Colombia, Peru, Mexico and Chile) in the Pacific Alliance trading group have also formed a large market to facilitate the free movements of merchandises, services and capital in the region.

When it comes to Scotch whisky, Latin America is already a significant market. As a matter of fact, it has become so popular among young middle class people in developing markets in the region, accounting for $657.42 million (£460 million) in exports, or almost 17 percent of the industry's total sales, Harpers noted. Today, Scotch whisky forms a third of all Scottish exports to Latin America.

"If you total up all of the middle class in Latin America, there are more than in India and China combined," Canning House chief executive Rob Capurro said. While SWA chief executive David Frost said, "Latin America is a big and growing market. That's why we took the lead in making the first Canning House event in Scotland happen."

While Scotch whisky seems to be a promising trade in Latin America, it also faced major competitive hurdles such as unjust tariffs and customs duties in the region. Low commodity prices, political volatility and economic difficulties were also part of the challenges.

Provincial distribution monopolies or favoring domestic distillers within Colombia were also cited as reasons of the aberration of the Scotch market in the country. And the SWA believed that lower tax rates in Colombia for spirits at 35 percent also give domestic producers an unfair competitive advantage.

Despite the recent economic turbulence and the volatile markets in Brazil and Venezuela, the trends remains clear and good for Scotch Whisky in Latin America. And with the sustained growth of the Mexican and Colombian economies, the opportunities for Scotch are also promising, Herald Scotland reported.

"GDP growth and favorable demographics will deliver good export prospects in the future," Frost said. "Scottish business should be ready to take that opportunity, to stay the course through turbulent times, and to invest in brands and markets. To make that happen, Latin America itself needs to keep becoming more open and market-oriented."