34 the World Of Hospitality
IFE 2019
Show Preview: IFE 2019
Discover a Taste of Tomorrow
Events
Back for its milestone 21st edition, The
International Food & Drink Event (IFE) will be
returning to ExCeL London on 17-20 March
with an insightful and vibrant schedule of
talks, tastings and trends forecasting.
The biennial event is a must-attend for all
those looking to explore a taste of tomorrow
and will provide buyers with the chance
to discover emerging trends; meet with
thousands of international, future-focused
brands; and hear inspiring and thought-
provoking talks from key figures across the
food & drink industry.
Taking place in London – the home of food &
drink innovation – IFE 2019 offers a unique
opportunity for both British and international
suppliers to meet and connect with top retail,
wholesale & distribution, import & export and
foodservice & hospitality buyers all under one
roof. With 1,350 cutting-edge food & drink
manufacturers attending from 111 countries,
IFE 2019 is one of the only places to
experience the best of what the food & drink
industry has to offer across the globe.
2019 Food & Drink Insight
With a jam-packed line up, IFE 2019 aims to
help buyers navigate the changing landscape
of the food & drink market by exploring the
trends which will shape the industry in 2019
and beyond. To help form the event agenda,
IFE surveyed its network of members to find
out which trends made the biggest impact on
their businesses in 2018. Plant-based food
& veganism, the free-from movement and
booze-free beverages were listed as the top
three trends that influenced the sector in
2018.
Looking at what’s on the horizon for 2019,
IFE’s research also found that plant-based
eating, sustainable packaging, gut-friendly
foods and sugar-free are the most prominent
trends businesses are looking to leverage in
2019 – demonstrating the affect consumers’
growing interest in health & wellbeing is
having on the sector.
Talking & Tasting Trends
To delve deeper into these trends, prominent
experts from the food & drink industry,
including leading plant-based influencers,
will take to the IFE Talking Trends stage
throughout the four-day event to share their
experiences, opinions and predictions. The
impressive line-up includes newly announced
industry experts such as Ella Mills, Founder &
Brand Director at Deliciously Ella, and Damien
Kennedy, Founder & CEO of Wheyhey –
naturally sugar-free ice cream and brownies.
In addition, the Tasting Trends area – which is
new to IFE 2019 – will provide a multi-sensory
experience that will take visitors on a culinary
journey as they see, smell and taste the food &
drink of the future.
Trend Trails
To ensure visitors don’t miss out on key
insights, back by popular demand are the
IFE Trend Trails. Designed to help visitors
navigate their way around the event one key
insight at a time, the Trend Trails will visit
some of the most progressive brands in the
plant-based, food to go, private label, circular
brands and global innovations movements.
Speaking about this year’s event line up,
Soraya Gadelrab, Event Director for IFE, said:
“We have brought together a truly fantastic
line-up of experts for this year’s event, to
offer buyers the most up-to-date intel on the
changing food & drink landscape and provide
inspiration, ideas and tools to help businesses
tap into upcoming trends. It’s a must-visit for
anyone looking to grow their business in 2019
and beyond.”
Ambassadors
To ensure all visitors – whether chefs,
distributors or buyers – are given an
unrivalled experience at IFE 2019, the event
has announced it is collaborating with seven
industry experts to help build the best and
most insightful IFE for buyers and producers
alike. The experts – who collectively bring
over 100 years’ worth of industry experience
to the table – will work with organiser, Fresh
Montgomery, to identify trends, build insights
Register for free: www.ife.co.uk
and share industry knowledge to shape the
event.
The IFE 2019 ambassadors are:
• Christopher Faulkner, Founder &
Director, The Food Service Expert
• Sandra Sullivan MBE, Director, The Food
& Drink Exporters Association
• Tony Kitous, Founder & Creative
Director, The Comptoir Group
• Milena Lazarevska, Head of Origination,
Future Brands, Sainsburys
• Kate Houssaye, Quality Manager, New
York Bakery Company Ltd.
• Sarah Whiddett, Head of Insight &
Customer Experience, Bidfood
• Christine Tacon CBE, The Groceries
Code Adjudicator
Two events in one
Attendees to IFE 2019 will not only benefit
from one insightful event line-up but two, as
it’s co-located with Pro2Pac – the complete
processing & packaging event for the food
& drink industry. The event will reveal the
best of manufacturing innovation, packaging
solutions and printing & labelling products,
and is especially designed for food & drink
businesses looking to be inspired by new
concepts, innovative solutions & designs.
Pro2Pac will feature 120 suppliers including
names such as Tetra Pak, Adpak Machinery
Systems, Ilpra Systems UK and Ravenwood
Packaging, and offer a full schedule of free-
to-attend, added value attractions such as
seminars, networking opportunities and
workshops. An impressive array of experts
will lead debates on the Outside the Box
Stage on key issues such as sustainability,
plastics, global packaging trends and Brexit.
While, the future of packaging innovation
will be recognised via awards such as the
Pro2Pac Student Design Challenge, jointly
co-ordinated by the event organisers Fresh
Montgomery and the Packaging Collective, as
well as The Pro2Pac Excellence Awards.