REVIEW
29 May - 2 April 2018
IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Center,
Bangkok, Thailand
www.worldoffoodasia.com
Ribbon cutting ceremony at the Argentina
Pavilion, official partner country of
THAIFEX-World of Food Asia 2018.
Dr. Somkid Jatusripitak, Thailand‘s Deputy
Prime Minister (left), visiting an exhibitor at
THAIFEX.
The event saw a total of 13,110
international trade visitors from over 150
countries.
Minimising food waste
and giving back to local
communities
AROUND 30% of the food produced
worldwide is lost or wasted every
year, according to the United Nations
Environment Programme. Hence, in
partnership with food rescue foundation
Thai Scholars of Sustenance (Thai SOS),
exhibitors at THAIFEX-World of Food
Asia came together to collect leftover
food during the teardown of the show.
The food donation was then inspected,
packed and stored appropriately by Thai
SOS, before being delivered to local
communities in need of supplies.
Organisers said the 15th and largest
edition of THAIFEX-World of Food Asia
is an impactful platform that showcased
the synergistic partnership between the
government and private sector to address
growing F&B demands and concerns in
Asia.
Jointly organised by trade fair
company Koelnmesse, Thailand’s
Department of International Trade
Promotion and the Thai Chamber of
Commerce, the event saw a total of
13,110 international trade visitors from
over 150 countries — representing a
9.4% growth from last year’s edition
and surpassing all of the show’s previous
records.
This brought the total trade visitor
count to 62,039 — a 12.6% increase
from the previous show, surpassing the
expected number of 60,000, and the
largest visitorship at THAIFEX-World of
Food Asia to date.
“The potential of ASEAN is
tremendous. We’ve been recording
strong double-digit growth since 2014,
in conjunction with the establishment
of the ASEAN Economic Community.
In fact, we have been adding an average
of 10,000sqm to the show every year
since then, and we’ve even carved out
an additional two trade days this year to
better facilitate business exchange,” said
Mathias Kuepper, managing director,
Koelnmesse.
International and local
presence
THAIFEX-World of Food Asia 2018
played host to 2,537 exhibitors, recording
a 17% increase from the previous year,
attesting to the increasing importance
of the ASEAN region to the F&B
industry. Representatives from countries
such as Argentina, Belgium, Germany,
Japan, South Korea, the Philippines,
and Vietnam held a strong presence at
the show, with international exhibitor
numbers on par with local exhibitors for
the second year running.
Napawan Promkhatkaew, managing
director, Family Tree Foods, said: “The
online busine