The first conference held by the World Union of Wholesale Markets next year will be held in Prague in May, followed by a second meeting in Paris in September.

The Czech Republic event has been themed ‘Prague: The Heart of Europe’ and will focus on harmonising European market legislation, relations between sellers, producers and supermarkets, and detailed case studies on market relocation and modernisation.

Opportunities in the Russian market world as well as eastern and central European market perspectives will also be up for discussion.

The three-day conference will feature a visit to the Lord Mayor in Prague City Hall and a parliamentary meeting, as well as the opportunity to go on a ‘Prague by Night’ bus and walking tour, with a welcome cocktail and dinner held in Strahov’s Monastery.

This will be followed by a second conference in Paris, to mark the 40th anniversary of Rungis Wholesale Market.

The event, from September 23-25, will be themed ‘Wholesale Markets: A Modernising Step in the Food Distribution Chain’, and will discuss what global food chain operators are really expecting from wholesale markets, along with the impact of wholesale market evolution on food production and marketing chains.

Presentations will be based on the results of a Rungis survey in France, and possibly other countries, in the general framework of the fourth edition of the Rungis Forum.

Four different sessions have been proposed, with a focus on suppliers’ expectations, as well as client and operator expectations. A technical visit will be made through several halls in Rungis, while the social events are likely to include a cocktail in Paris City Hall and a gala dinner in the Eiffel Tower.