PuntoItaly wire 2017

PuntoItaly wire 2017
A chronicle of the trade fairs visited by puntoItaly during its travels abroad. A first-hand reportage of meetings, emotions, and experiences.

SIRHA

Lyon (France), 21-25 January

3,000 exhibitors – 208,000 visitors

More than 25,000 international stopped in Lyon for an edition of Sirha that saw a 17% increase in foreign visitors, confirming the importance of the events scheduled during the trade show.

For many years now the Coupe du Monde de la Patisserie and the Bocuse d’Or have represented two moments of absolute excellence in the world of pastry and restaurant management on a planetary scale, providing motivation and inspiration to all the companies that choose the stage of Lyon to present their new developments at the beginning of the season.

The French flag flew high at the end of the two days of competition in the pastry event created in 1989 by Gabriel Paillasson, after Italy’s win in the previous edition and which, according to the rules, did not participate this year as the winner must skip the following competition. The prestigious second position was awarded to an emerging Japan, and third to Switzerland.

The Bocuse d’Or this year was won by the USA, followed by Norway, inverting the 2015 standings. Third place was awarded to Iceland, confirming the successful trend of chefs coming from northern Europe who in recent editions have earned numerous awards.

 

GULFOOD

Dubai (UAE), 26 February-2 March

5,000 exhibitors – 95,000 visitors

The 2017 edition of Gulfood will be remembered for two major events. First, the restructuring of how the exhibitors are positioned inside the pavilions, a changed that mixed the flow of visitors, forced to orient themselves in the 100,000 square meters of the prestigious event, with the exhibiting companies no longer subdivided into geographic areas but rather by product sector.

Starting in 2017 Dubai therefore offers the food&beverage world three prestigious annual events, in February, September, and November.

The second event was not planned by the organizers, who were surprised as everyone in Dubai to see the trade show open under downpouring rain and a sky more reminiscent of London than the metropolis built by the Arab sheikhs between the desert and the sea.

PuntoItaly was situated in an area dedicated to trade magazines from several continents and it was a great pleasure to see how the interests of many visitors focused directly on our country, which continues to attract new professionals interested in deepening their knowledge of Italy as opposed to the many imitations that are now widespread in every corner of the planet.

 

MIG MOROCCO

Casablanca (Morocco), 21-24 March

130 exhibitors – 20,000 visitors

2017 saw our magazine puntoItaly land for the first time in Africa, participating at the Cremai fair together with many companies of the gelato business, from machines to ingredients, in an area of 270 square meters christened with the name Mig Morocco, created by the partnership between Cremai and Mig.

Editrade was the media partner of the initiative, and the magazine puntoItaly therefore played a central role in four days of meetings with the many local operators, curious about this opportunity to do business with Italy.

Many local authorities were in attendance. In fact, at the ribbon cutting were present the Consul General of Italy in Casablanca Alessandro Ferranti, President of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Morocco Giulio Frascatani, the Director of Ice Giovanni Bifulco, and the newly elected Minister of Energy and Mayor of Kénitra, Aziz Rabbah, and of course the organizer of the event, Kamal Rahal Essoulami.

Casablanca is the most populous city in Morocco. In fact, it is the economic capital. It is here where most of the country’s industrial activities and services are present, the highest national income of the country is recorded, and more than 30% of the national banking network is situated. There could be no better stage to set up this event that, for four days, put Italy and its specialties in the spotlight.

 

GASTROPAN

Sibiu (Romania), 23-25 March

130 exhibitors – 22,000 visitors

Next on the calendar for puntoItaly was its traditional stop at GastroPan, a small fair representing the important Romanian market that is constantly expanding and always looking for new products.

In fact, this was the dominant theme of this edition, and among the new trends and innovations presented at GastroPan were healthy ingredients and products that promote a healthy lifestyle, products that are gluten-free, sugar-free, and lactose-free, not to mention multifunction equipment, food trucks, energy-saving solutions, and high-tech machines.

This general trend was also underlined by Ilonka Boldizsár, Vice President of the International Union of Bakers and Pastry Chefs Uibc during the event’s official opening ceremony.

There were also some very intense competitions: more than 100 competitors from all over Romania participated in the nine categories of events in this edition of GastroPan, including artworks made of sugar and chocolate, bread, and a culinary section.

 

HOFEX

Hong Kong (China) 8-11 May

2,600 exhibitors – 40,000 visitors

A quiet and sunny Hong Kong welcomed me in early May, but it was just a Sunday illusion. The four days of Hofex were as frenetic as usual in the city that is ranked fourth in the world for population density per square kilometre. The cloudy sky and the constant humidity seem to embrace the smog, but this is Hong Kong, whose appeal remains absolutely unique.

It was the 30th edition of Hofex, and the elegance of the Convention Center was even more notable throughout the 66,000 square meters of the trade show that attracted an increasing number of international visitors (+17.2% compared to 2015), including significant growth from some specific countries like Macau, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Korea.

The Hong Kong International Culinary Classic 2017 gastronomic event, organized by the World Association of Chefs’ Societies (Wacs), saw more than 900 skilled chefs performing during the four days of fierce competitions with participants from Hong Kong, China, Korea, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Thailand, Germany, Taiwan, Australia, Philippines, and Macau, with an incredible number of young up-and-coming professionals.

Near the competition area, which sparkled with spirit and enthusiasm, we positioned our corner dedicated to promoting Italian culture and production, and once again it was very pleasant to satisfy the curiosity of those who don’t know much about what Italy has to offer and to receive compliments from many fans who already rely on our ingredients and our equipment.

 

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