Exhibitions still important

How useful are exhibitions in the Internet age? Fears of the Internet displacing exhibitions seem to have been unfounded… According to Edit Szabó, deputy director of Agrármarketing Centrum (AMC), there is no major difference between the present and the former strategiy for selecting exhibitions. Those exhibitions are taken into consideration by AMC which are held in markets of special importance to Hungarian agriculture or are events of extreme significance. They follow the strategy worked out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and also consult trade organisations. Another consideration is the prestige of the event within the given sector. Anuga held in Cologne is an example, as it is the largest food industry exhibition in the world. For the wine sector, Vinexpo held in Bordeaux or the London International Wine and Spirit Fair are of similar importance. Hungarian exhibitors have been present at Biofach in Nuremberg, or Fruit Logistica in Berlin. IFE Foodapest was held by Hungexpo in the place of Foodapest, for the first time in 2007. According to Márton Szebeni, project leader of Hungexpo, 60 per cent of exhibitors attending last year indicated that they would attend the event each year, which translated to 5,000 square meters of exhibition space. The actual area occupied in 2007 turned out to be 3,318 square meters. The Hungarian office of Promosalons has been representing SIAL and other events since 1992. Interest displayed towards the event held once every two years is enormous – explains Ágnes Györki, head of the Budapest office. SIAL has been immune to Internet. Everybody wants to taste, touch and smell food which can only be done at an exhibition. Although fusing is the present trend among exhibitions, SIAL is an exception, occupying the entire area of the Paris-Nord Villepinte exhibition park. Anuga with 6607 exhibitors from 95 countries occupied over 304,000 square meters in 2007. As Márta Kakuk, head of Mon-Art Kft, the representatives of the Cologne exhibition has told us, Internet has not had any adverse effect on them so far. Potential buyers still want to see the food they intend to buy, even if they have originally made contact with the seller using the Internet. Anuga also offers a wide range of enterprises of various sizes. It is also a ten in one exhibition, accommodating all sectors of the food business. Attendance by Hungarian exhibitors is generally subsidised via the AMC, but there are also independent exhibitors like Kometa 99 or ProForm Kft. As Italian food is generally linked to health as a result of a deliberate promotional campaign, it is becoming increasingly popular world-wide – says Alessio Ponz de Leon Pisani, director of the Italian Foreign Trade Institute. The Without Frontiers Office has been established to help Hungarian enterprises in gaining access to the EU markets. According to György Halász, acting chairman of the Office, food trade is based on personal contact and Internet only plays a complimentary role in these.