From 25 to 28 April, Alimentaria is hosting its most international event ever at Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Via exhibition centre, thanks to a firm commitment to consolidating its position as a platform for international growth for the companies taking part, who see the event as an opportunity to access new markets. To address this desire for expansion, Alimentaria has increased its budget by 35% to attract more international buyers. The goal is to surpass the 497 Hosted Buyers in 2014 by inviting more than 800 to attend in 2016.
As always, Alimentaria will facilitate contacts between exhibitors and key international buyers across the whole food and beverage chain, with the aim of encouraging business meetings and firming up foreign deals. At Alimentaria 2014, 59% of exhibitors were already exporting their products, while 73% of those who were not yet selling abroad said that they fully intended to do so within the next two or three years.
To drive this internationalisation, Alimentaria will once again be calling on the support of institutions such as the Spanish Food and Drink Industry Federation (FIAB), the Association of Internationalised Industrial Companies (AMEC), the Spanish Foreign Trade Institute (ICEX), the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment (MAGRAMA) and the Agency for Business Competitiveness (ACCIÓ).
The meeting will also facilitate contacts between exhibitors and guest international buyers by means of the virtual platform Alimentaria Matchmaking, which lets people check who is attending the show, make initial contact with them and set up business meetings ahead of the event.
A newcomer to the programme next year will be Intervin Business Meetings, part of the Vinorum space. For the first time, the wine industry expo will have its own programme of business meetings thanks to the major presence of buyers from the sector on the Hosted Buyers programme.
Another programme is the Food & Drink Business Meetings which host previously arranged meetings between exhibitors and buyers from outside Europe. Meanwhile, the Brokerage Event will be the place for firming up commercial agreements and technology transfers between companies and European technology centres.
Representation on five continents
The aim of the international buyers’ programme is to open up business opportunities for participants in Alimentaria on five continents, so the Hosted Buyers contingent includes guests from every corner of the world: Latin America, Asia, the United States and Canada, Europe and the Middle East.
International representation at Alimentaria does not end with these 800-plus hosted buyers. The show’s organisers are continuing their programme of trips and have strengthened their international promotional campaigns to identify opportunities, get in-depth knowledge of strategic markets and make contact with sector representatives with the aim of attracting trade professionals from all over the world and exceeding the 42,000 international visitors who attended the 2014 event.
In the last few months, targeted promotional actions have taken place in key markets in Europe (France, Germany, the United Kingdom), North America (USA), Latin America (Mexico, Chile), Asia (China, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand) and the Middle East (UAE) to make contact with and attract high quality buyers in the whole distribution chain, from importers to wholesalers, retailers and the HoReCa sector.
40 years of Alimentaria
Next year, between 25 and 28 April, Alimentaria will be celebrating its 40th anniversary at Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Via exhibition centre. The International Food & Drinks Exhibition is preparing a completely revamped edition with an updated trade fair concept that seeks to increase the overall offering and strengthen its strategic position in terms of gastronomy, restaurants and hotels in order to represent a broader spectrum of the industry and reflect new market trends and consumer habits.
In 2016, Alimentaria will be structured into five shows, encompassing the main food and drinks markets: Intervin (wines and spirits), Intercarn (meat and meat products), Restaurama (restaurants), Interlact (mik and dairy products) and Multiple Foods (all kinds of confectionery, preserves, oils and premium products).
The fair celebrates its four decades in the field having consolidated itself as the exhibition of reference for the food and drinks sector in Europe. At its last edition, the event attracted more than 140,000 visitors from all over the world and hosted 3,800 represented companies and more than 1,000 international companies.
Leave a Reply