ruit Logistica in Berlin is a huge event – we all know that. In 2012, it attracted some 2,500 trade exhibitors from 80 countries, with foreign exhibitors accounting for around 90 per cent of the total. Over 1,000 media representatives from 50 countries were accredited at the 2012 event.

As such, Fruit Logistica has established itself as the leading event in the global fresh produce calendar and each year, a nation of supply acts as the main partner country for the event.

In 2012, this was Turkey. As the 2013 event fast approaches, it is worth looking at the motivation to fulfil this role and the impact it can have by acting as the main partner to such a huge event.

Turkey has seen significant growth in the production of some of its key fruit crops over the last 10 years, with apples moving up from 2.4 million to 2.6m tonnes per annum (an eight per cent increase), oranges increasing from just over one million to over 1.7mt (a 61 per cent increase) and lemons going from 460,000 tonnes to over 780,000t (an increase of some 71 per cent). This is impressive going by any standards.

Growth in exports is even more impressive. Apple exports have shot up from 12,000t to over 87,000t (an increase of some 618 per cent), orange exports have increased from 90,000t to over 360,000t – an increase of some 303 per cent overall, lemon exports have rocketed by 197 per cent from 164,000t to over 485,000t and stonefruit exports have risen from 32,000t to just under 120,00t – an increase of some 276 per cent.

Key export markets to have emerged in this time include the likes of Russia, the Ukraine, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern markets and Eastern Europe. Exports to the EU are still quite modest in comparison, but still represent a key future market for the Turkish fruit export sector.

Total production has reached over 40mt per annum and exports are now valued at $2.1 billion per annum. In the future, Turkey is aiming to export fresh produce worth $10bn by 2023. Involvement in Fruit Logistica 2012, as the lead partner country, was expected to play a key role in achieving this ambitious goal.

As main country sponsor, the immediate benefits for Turkey were:

•Sponsoring the official, high-level and prestigious opening ceremony of Fruit Logistica. This is held the evening before it actually starts and is normally a VIP invitation-only event and attended by the German minister for agriculture.

In 2012, German federal minister of food, agriculture and consumer protection, Ilse Aigner, met at Turkey’s exhibition stand with Zafer ÇaÄŸlayan, Turkish minister of state for foreign trade, together with Ambassador Hüseyin Avni KarslıoÄŸlu. The two cut the red ribbon at the national pavilion at the start of Fruit Logistica.

• Huge exposure around the 25 exhibition halls per se – posters, billboards, logos at key sites around the event, as well as the huge billboards at the main entrances to the Berlin Messe.

•Additional exposure on public transport and key city locations and a main feature and numerous press releases before, during and after the event on the Fruit Logistica website.

This role as official partner country is seen as highly prestigious in it own right. It also confers acceptance into a small group of countries that are seen to be highly serious about their emergence as key suppliers to the international fruit and vegetable sector. Turkey is now firmly in this group of countries, and sponsoring Fruit Logistica 2012 only served to underline this.

Due to its geographic proximity, Germany is of course a key export market for the Turkish produce sector. The Turkish sponsorship of Fruit Logistica is, however, a much more serious statement of mid- to long-term intent to be a major supplier to international markets such as Russia, the former Soviet Union and the Middle East and Gulf, and longer term to Asia too.

This is all well and good of course, but the question often gets asked, not just by Turkey, as to what benefit do you really get from attending the show, let alone acting as the key sponsor? Each year, the Berlin Messe carries out a detailed survey of the attitudes of both exhibitors and visitors. The key points to emerge from this for 2012 are as follows:

•89.6 per cent of the exhibitors assessed the commercial success of their participation at this year‘s Fruit Logistica as “positive”.

•87.1 per cent of company representatives expect a “very good to satisfactory” level of business as a result of contacts made at the event.

•90.4 per cent of this year’s participants stated that they intend to participate in Fruit Logistica 2013.

•77.4 per cent of the trade visitors hold a leading management position in their companies, such as managing director, partner, member of the board of management, head of a department, independent businessperson etc.

We have no reason to suspect that the positive feedback gained from exhibitors en masse is not replicated by the Turkish companies who attended. These are high levels of satisfaction, however, our own conclusions on the importance of Fruit Logistica for Turkey in 2012 are as follows:

•It is now a “must-attend” event for any company/organisation involved with the global fresh produce sector.

•Turkey has set its stall out – participation in Fruit Logistica is a key, mid- to long-term part of its overall export development strategy for the fresh produce sector and for many organisations who attend Fruit Logistica. There is a strong sense of “we have to be there” (not least, it is far from just an EU-based event these days). We would expect to see a stronger Turkish presence at Fruit Logistica in the future, not weaker.

•Acting as the main official partner country is a high-prestige activity and confers a high degree of credibility as to the seriousness of that country’s intent to be seen by its peers as a leading produce supplier.

•In the context of current annual fresh produce exports of some $2.1bn and planned exports of $ 10bn within 10 years – the expenditure required to participate is however, in effect, minimal.

The impact of Turkey’s participation is therefore twofold: the obvious prestige gained from acting as the main official partner country – this is probably in the short term. The longer-term benefit of attending such an event and all it entails is what will help drive the development of the Turkish export sector towards its ambitious 2023 targets.

John Giles is a divisional director with Promar International, a leading agri-food supply and demand chain consultant. He is also chair of the Food, Drink & Agriculture Group of the CIM. Email john.giles@genusplc.com.