Asia’s premier fresh fruit and vegetable trade show is set for another record-breaking year on 6-8 September 2017 in Hong Kong, according to organiser Global Produce Events (GPE).
With more than two months to go before Asia Fruit Logistica opens its doors at AsiaWorld-Expo, bookings of exhibition space are up by 25 per cent on last year’s total.
Exhibitor participation from China – traditionally the largest single exhibiting nation at Asia Fruit Logistica – has increased sharply, with the Chinese pavilion expanding by 90 per cent compared with last year’s event.
Beijing-based fresh produce e-commerce company MissFresh is one of many new Chinese exhibitors at this year’s show. Speed of delivery and high quality are paramount for MissFresh, which has set up a cold chain logistics system to deliver fresh food to consumers’ doors within two hours.
“We’ll be showcasing our pre-warehouse model at Asia Fruit Logistica,” explained MissFresh head of marketing Zhang Yao. “We have established sorting centres in core cities across China together with community distribution mini-warehouses to provide a two-hour door-to-door delivery service. We’ve actually achieved a one-hour delivery service for 80 per cent of orders, but we believe we can do even better in the future.”
As well as promoting its distribution model, MissFresh is seeking to establish direct sourcing relationships at Asia Fruit Logistica. “We want to provide our consumers with the best high-quality fresh produce from around the world,” said Zhang. “We already cooperate with hundreds of global suppliers but we would like to establish more cooperative relationships. We want to supply fresh foods directly from the origin, to ensure the best quality and price.”
European fresh produce suppliers will also be out in force with promotional campaigns at Asia Fruit Logistica, as they seek to ramp up their presence in Asian markets.
Premium European Kiwi – a 3m euro campaign funded by the European Union and Greece to promote European kiwifruit in the Chinese, Canadian and United Arab Emirates markets – will be back for its second year at Asia Fruit Logistica.
“The 2016 edition was a big success for us, marked by the attraction of buyers, importers and distributors,” said Anta Tsaira, project manager of Premium European Kiwi.
Four Greek kiwifruit-producing organisations are behind the campaign: Agricultural Cooperative of Chrisochori (Nespar), Agricultural Association Nestos, Alkyon and Goustera.
“Various activities are going to be implemented in Hong Kong and Shanghai in the coming months, including outdoor advertising, blog contests, promotional events and in-store promotions,” added Tsaira.
Information-packed programme
Well over 11,000 top-level buyers and trade professionals from more than 70 countries are expected to attend Asia Fruit Logistica.
Asia Fruit Logistica’s business week kicks off with the Asiafruit Congress, Asia’s premier fresh produce conference event, which takes place the day before the exhibition on Tuesday 5 September.
Asiafruit Congress returns with a high-powered programme covering a range of hot topics. Fresh trends in Asia’s food retail market, delivering global brands to local consumers, and the changing global trade landscape are the headline themes on the agenda. Asiafruit Congress serves as an ideal primer to Asia Fruit Logistica, helping visitors to work out who and what to focus on at the trade show.
On the show-floor at Asia Fruit Logistica, visitors can take part in two Hall Forums this year. Asiafruit Business Forum offers daily workshops with practical ideas and solutions for better fresh produce marketing. Day one focuses on packaging, looking at its role in terms of both product preservation and merchandising. Day two is all about marketing, while day three looks at production and trade issues.
Meanwhile, the second Hall Forum turns the spotlight on the worlds of hi-tech and logistics. Each morning, Smart Horticulture Asia, the forum for information management, standards and technology, will explore data management at different stages of the supply chain.
Each afternoon, Cool Logistics Asia offers a new series of practical workshops on cold chain management. The wide-ranging programme looks at the future of container shipping, perishable logistics for beginners and exporting to Asia by air.
Visitors can purchase their tickets online at www.asiafruitlogistica.com/tickets and make up to a 40 per cent saving on their entrance fee compared with buying tickets on the door.
