Fi Europe: Expected To Be ‘Can’t Miss’ Event of 2009

FRANKFURT -

Food ingredients Europe (fieurope.ingredientsnetwork.com/home), the industry event connecting FMCG food & beverage manufacturers with raw & processed ingredients suppliers, is on track to outpace both food and trade show industry growth forecasts, it was announced today.

(Photo: www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090818/NY61718 )

The exhibition, which takes place 17-19 November in Frankfurt, is set to be the largest version in its 20 year history. Over 1100 companies from 94 countries will be exhibiting their ingredients for food and beverage products, 10% more than the previous show in 2007. As of 18 August over 5,000 visitors have pre-registered for the exhibition, outpacing the comparable point in 2007 by over 30%.

“There are expected to be more European product launches in 2009 than 2008,” comments Event Director Greg Cherry. “Many of these products are sub-brands of existing products focusing on sodium reduction (fieurope.ingredientsnetwork.com/the-future-of-sodium-reduction) and sugar reduction (fieurope.ingredientsnetwork.com/the-future-of-sugar-reduction), while even more still include natural flavours and aromas (ni.ingredientsnetwork.com/home).”

Cherry continues, “And it was just announced that the recession has officially lifted in France and Germany. This will free up R&D budgets at major manufacturers; their innovation pipelines will be filling up to launch in 2010 and beyond.”

As reported on IngredientsNetwork.com (www.ingredientsnetwork.com/home), major food manufacturers, including Nestle and Unilever, are experiencing increased sales compared to 2008. Due to the recession their unit margins have dropped resulting in lower profit expectations, however numerous analysts concur that this will be a blip in what is a strong industry.

“While the trade show industry has experienced an average of -10% attendance dropoff, at Fi Europe we expect the opposite,” explains Cherry. “The food industry is hungry to innovate and grow their product lines, and Fi Europe is where they come to whet their appetites. These positive early indications show that despite hurdles like the recession and swine flu paranoia, the industry regards Fi Europe as a can’t miss event.”

FiE’s final attendance figures will be released shortly after the show to allow for the ABC audit to be completed. An ABC audit is an independent verification of trade show attendance figures that ensures that the statistics quoted are true. FiE is one of very few ingredients industry events to undergo this rigorous process.

FiE Frankfurt (fieurope.ingredientsnetwork.com/home) takes place at the Frankfurt Messe on 17-19 November 2009. Co-located with FiE is Natural ingredients, the industry event for natural and organic food & beverage ingredients. Registering for Fi Europe is free and can be done by visiting the Fi Europe website (www.ingredientsnetwork.com/register).

www.ingredientsnetwork.com

Source: UBM International Media

Leonie Reindertsen, Marketing Manager - European Exhibitions, +31-346-559-443, leonie.reindertsen at ubm.com; Photo: https://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090818/NY61718