SINGAPORE, Jan 16, 2014 - (ACN Newswire) - The region's most established and comprehensive food and hospitality trade show, organised by Singapore Exhibition Services (SES), has made its mark to become the first event to max out the Singapore Expo. Occupying all 10 exhibition halls and Max Atria, the 2014 edition of Food&HotelAsia (FHA) and Wine&SpiritsAsia (WSA) will be held from 8 - 11 April this year.
Spanning a total of 100,000sqm, an eight per cent increase in size from 2012, it is the largest edition in the event's illustrious 37 year history. FHA had humble beginnings at the Hyatt hotel's basement car park, where 213 exhibitors from 13 countries/regions took up 4,000sqm. Since then, the event which includes WSA that was launched in 2010, has rapidly grown more than 25 times in size and witnessed a 13 fold increase in exhibitors. This year, industry buyers can expect to source from a gathering of 2,800 exhibitors from 70 countries/regions and 54 group pavilions at FHA. Offerings span across all aspects of the food and beverage (F&B) and hotel industry such as food products, bar and kitchen equipment and supplies, food processing equipment, hotel amenities, table ware and hospitality technology, among many others.
Mr. Stephen Tan, Chief Executive of show organiser SES, who has nurtured the show over the last 30 years says, "As industry pioneers we wanted to create a platform where local and regional food and hospitality businesses could benefit from what was available in the global market place as it was not easily accessible back then. Over the years, FHA has grown with the development of the region's hotel and F&B industry to become its top sourcing platform, and pinnacle trade event. This year is a milestone for FHA and WSA as it has maximised the available exhibition space of Singapore's largest exhibition venue. Moving forward, the event will only continue to grow as new markets in the region become more developed, and demand increases."
Food&HotelAsia - Keeping pace with the industry
In 2011, the number of establishments in the accommodation and F&B services sector in Singapore stood at 6,842. This is in contrast to just 4,739 in 2005.[1] In 2012, total F&B operating receipts amounted to S$7.8 billion, with all F&B services groups including restaurants, fast food outlets, food caterers and other F&B services registering increases. The number of hotel rooms in Singapore is also expected is to grow by more than 20 per cent to about 53,000 rooms by 2015.[2]
With the increase in the number of F&B establishments and hotels, competition has intensified and it has also become increasingly important to have innovative concepts and a unique selling point. By bringing together a vast selection of unique food offerings and front to backend solutions from all over the world, FHA creates a unique and comprehensive marketplace for businesses to source for new food products and innovative solutions that not only help set them apart from the competition but also save time and labour.
Conversely, Singapore's locally produced exports and re-exports have also been increasing over the years. Domestic food exports nearly doubled from S$2.4 billion in 2006 to S$4.2 billion in 2012.[1] Singapore's status as a food hub has also seen its re-export of food products increase from S$1.6 billion in 2006 to S$2 billion in 2012.[1]
FHA is a perfect platform for local manufacturers and distributors to expand their regional client base. With the internationality of the show, FHA sees visitors from more than 100 countries/regions each edition. The 2012 edition welcomed a record total of more than 42,000 trade visitors, an increase of 10.4 per cent over 2010. Notably, overseas visitors increased by 14.5 per cent and made up 41.6 per cent of the total visitors.
New speciality show at Food&HotelAsia
The 19th edition of FHA will see the launch of SpecialityCoffee&Tea, bringing the total number of speciality shows to six. Set against the backdrop of a booming cafe culture, SpecialityCoffee&Tea will integrate all aspects of the industry in a single platform featuring a comprehensive range of equipment, coffee beans, tea leaves and accessories from across the globe. SpecialityCoffee&Tea is the largest, most comprehensive and international show of its kind in the region.
Prominent international exhibitors at the show include renowned local and international industry brands such as Bunn-O-Matic, Bravilor, Cimbali, Diedrich, Dilmah, Ebenezer, Empire Tea, Expolanka Teas, Giesen, illycaffe, La Marzocco, Nestle, Rancilio, Santino Coffee, Santos and many more. In addition, the event will also host the FHA Barista Challenge and first-ever FHA Latte Art Challenge, alongside a number of courses, workshops and fringe activities.
Ms. Ting Siew Mui, Project Director of Lifestyle Events at SES says, "Rising affluence and changing lifestyles in the region has created greater demand for gourmet coffee. Perfectly complementing FHA's five existing speciality shows, the launch of SpecialityCoffee&Tea throws a spotlight on the industry and highlights its development, and caters to the region's booming cafe culture. In addition to the showcase at SpecialityCoffee&Tea, visitors can also source from the unique offerings at HospitalityStyleAsia and Bakery&Pastry for all their cafe needs. Overall, we have received much enthusiasm from international exhibitors wanting to get a leg into the regional market and great support from the associations who have come on board as partners."
The other five speciality shows are FoodAsia, HotelAsia, Bakery&Pastry, HospitalityStyleAsia, and HospitalityTechnology.
Wine&SpiritsAsia - the region's premier industry event
Since 2010, WSA has been held alongside FHA to give it the space and distinction to grow into a premium trade exhibition of spirits and wines for regional buyers.
Spread over 5,000sqm the show has 200 exhibitors from 20 countries/regions and seven group pavilions. This year's show has the most number of group pavilions, representing the world's top producing wine regions, with Spain leading the charge with the biggest pavilion. Adding to the buzz on the show floor is a series of talks and master-classes highlighting wines from countries such as Austria, France, Italy and Spain.
All-rounded experience at FHA and WSA
Come April 2014, a combination of the shows' exhibition, conference, competitions and fringe activities will deliver a holistic experience to all attendees.
Competitions - The FHA Culinary Challenge (FCC) will see 856 chefs from all over the world battle it out in the Individual Challenge, Dream Team Challenge and Gourmet Team Challenge. Returning this year to the FCC is the National Team Challenge. Held once every four years, 11 national teams will compete, but only the top three will qualify for the Battle of the Lion, with one emerging victorious. SpecialityCoffee&Tea will play host to the FHA Barista Challenge and the first FHA Latte Art Challenge, while the Asian Pastry Cup will be held in conjunction with Bakery&Pastry.
Competitions at WSA include the RIPE-WSA Cocktail Challenge as well as the WSA Wine Challenge. Entries from across the globe will be judged by a panel of Asia's top wine buyers and writers for the WSA Wine Challenge. Awards for the winning wines will be presented at the first MAGNUM NIGHT, an exclusive networking event for the international wine scene, on 8 April 2014. The winning labels will also be displayed at an exclusive tasting lounge at WSA.
Conference - The FHA International Conference this year has more than 90 speakers and will throw the focus on key issues currently affecting the industry, paramount among them is the manpower crunch and ways to ease it. In view of this, the conference will feature a plenary session and an in-depth master-class to provide the industry with practical solutions on how to deal with the manpower shortage.
Other topics that will be covered include managing hotel operations and revenue optimisation strategies; managing F&B operations and food concepts; latest technologies for the hotel and F&B; food Safety, covering latest food regulations and contamination detection methods and food product innovation and development.
Commenting on the value the shows bring to the industry, Ms. Margaret Heng, Executive Director of Singapore Hotel Association says, "FHA and WSA provide industry practitioners with an exciting one-stop shop on the latest products, services and technology solutions from all over the world. The synergy of the two shows offers an excellent platform for networking and the sharing of best practices. In addition, the competitions are a great opportunity for talents from the region to showcase their skills while at the same time, promoting knowledge exchange. Constantly staying ahead with new and refreshing concepts, FHA and WSA are two events which the hospitality industry is always looking forward to with eager anticipation."
"Overall, FHA and WSA deliver a comprehensive, holistic and meaningful event for the whole industry," added Mr Tan. "Providing businesses with the latest innovations, new food products and unique amenities to choose from, as well as sharing ideas, knowledge and best practices will in turn translate to an enhanced experience for the consumer."
[1] Yearbook of statistics Singapore, Singstat, 2013.
http://bit.ly/1m8y2Kz
[2] Number of Singapore hotel rooms to hit 53,000 by 2015, Channel NewsAsia, 2013
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/number-of-singapore-hotel/610164.html
Food&HotelAsia and Wine&SpiritsAsia 2014 At A Glance
Date: 8-11 April 2014 (Tuesday - Friday)
Venue: Singapore Expo
Opening Hours: 10:00am - 6:00pm (8-10 April, Tuesday - Thursday)
10.00am - 4:00pm (11 April, Friday)
Admission: Business and trade professionals only
Official website: www.foodnhotelasia.com, www.winespiritsasia.com
Contact:
Elaine Sng
PR Manager (Lifestyle and Machinery Events)
Singapore Exhibition Services Pte Ltd
Tel:+65 6233 6632, +65 9746 9902
Email: elaine.sng@sesallworld.com
Patricia Yee
PR Executive
Singapore Exhibition Services Pte Ltd
Tel: +65 6233 6637, +65 9382 7452
Email: patricia.yee@sesallworld.com
Surendren Apparoo
Principal Consultant Buzz Communications
Tel: +65 639 666 95, +65 9768 9611
Email: surendren@buzz.com.sg
Rav Dhaliwal
Principal Consultant Buzz Communications
Tel: +65-639 667 95, +65 9844 3767
Email: ravdhaliwal@buzz.com.sg
Topic: Trade Show or Conference
Source: Food&HotelAsia
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