On a firm basis

2012 will be the second year that Hungexpo organises Foodapest and UKBA together. We asked Zsófia Faluközi, Hungexpo’s UKBA project director about what can exhibitors and visitors expect from UKBA (International Trade Fair for Confectionery, Bakery and Gastronomy), held on 5-8 February 2012.

• Why did you decide to organise Foodapest and UKBA together? The themes of the two fairs are connected, therefore we can best utilise the synergies by organising them together. I must also mention that economic recession had to do with our decision. We learned from the feedback after our 2010 event that our exhibitors can profit from reaching different target groups of their products with a single fair appearance. • Is your main focus on exhibitors? Definitely, we give them priority in everything. Professionals can basically enter the event free of charge as we send out invitations to everyone on our mailing list and the partners of our exhibitors can also enter freely if they register in advance. • Who will be the exhibitors and the visitors? UKBA is a stable trade fair, so basically the same exhibitors are going to participate as in 2010, when 278 exhibitors from 17 countries presented their products and services to 19,000 trade visitors at the two events. We expect exhibitors from Germany, Poland, Romania (the special guest of Foodapest and UKBA in 2012), Italy, Slovakia and from the Balkans – we consider the latter a region where unexploited opportunities are waiting for Hungexpo. • Any new features if compared with earlier UKBAs? The way forward is to come up with better professional programmes every time. This year we aimed at organising fewer but high-quality accompanying events. We also opted for a diagonal route when deciding about the layout of the exhibition area. This idea comes from our French parent company and inspires extraordinary stand designs as well. • What kind of accompanying programmes will be waiting for visitors? We are in close cooperation with the National Guild of Hungarian Confectioners and with the Hungarian Bakers’ Association in organising programmes, such as the Central European selection of the Confectioner World Championship, the Cake of the Nation and the Bread of the Nation competitions, workshops, conferences and presentations. UKBA will also mark the return of the Novelty Prize.