The region’s food and beverage industry has been hammered by the coronavirus pandemic, with initial lockdowns forcing temporary closures and even the joy of reopening tempered by a variety of restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of Covid-19.
Gulfood, returns to the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) for its 26th edition next week, with industry professionals recognising its importance in reinvigorating global connections and making up for missed opportunities as the world’s first in-person sourcing event for the global F&B sector in almost a year.
Here Arabian Business talks exclusively with Mark Napier, show director, Gulfood, to find out what exhibitors and attendees can expect from this year’s event.
Gulfood 2021 runs across 20 exhibition halls at DWTC from February 21-25.
Mark Napier, show director, Gulfood
How important is this show to the industry at large?
Gulfood is a Dubai-born global food industry power brand that expertly links unrivalled trade enablement potential with extensive networking and knowledge-sharing platforms. As the world’s safest and most competitive global sourcing hub, Gulfood’s 34-year history has facilitated food industry trade equating to countless billions of dirhams, and connected food sourcing professionals from hundreds of new and established markets. Gulfood’s strategic importance to the global industry cannot be underestimated.
With industry professionals from near and far set to reconnect and reignite business in an industry beset by changing customer behaviours, Gulfood 2021 will welcome participants from 85 countries to the year’s most competitive global sourcing platform.
Has it taken on even greater significance in light of the continued Covid-19 pandemic?
Following one of the most challenging years in the industry’s history, issues such as food security have soared up global agendas with new operational realties requiring advancement in supply chain solutions to kickstart global food trade – all of which will be prominent at Gulfood.
Aside from business opportunities arising from an increasing focus on food security, Gulfood 2021 will lift the lid on innovative, new-to-market products and technology designed to address massively changing consumer behaviours including trends towards organic, natural and healthy products, immunity-boosting foods, contactless transactions, plant-based protein, sophisticated and proven providence ingredients, as well as convenience meal kits and environmentally friendly packaging.
Exhibitors can expect meetings with buyers who are looking to book major orders to start the year with confidence and explore the constantly changing dimensions of the F&B ecosystem and new industry paradigms.
Being an ‘in-person’ event, what will this do for industry confidence?
Gulfood is the global F&B sector’s first in-person sourcing event in almost 12 months, and trade professionals recognise the show’s importance in reinvigorating global connections and making up for missed – and exploring pipeline – opportunities.
We have canvassed extremely strong industry feedback about Gulfood’s potential to provide a timely boost to the F&B industry by restarting face-to-face meetings to spur a business resurgence.
This is the first in-person event for the global industry since the 25th edition of Gulfood in February 2020 and we are experiencing great demand from right across the F&B spectrum to meet in-person once again. The abiding theme has been the increased value that Gulfood provides to businesses to meet existing and new customers and bring like-minded sector professionals together. Food is sensory – it needs to be sampled and experienced therefore demands in-person interaction in order to be truly appreciated.
Businesses are also looking at securing orders early in the year. With Gulfood providing unmatched visitor quality over the years – exhibitors have regularly lauded the show as the most efficient international food and beverage exhibition – this is the only platform to start the year with conviction and confidence by accessing the latest industry innovations.
It is also important to understand the knock-on effects of DWTC’s commitment to providing the safest face-to-face business environment and delivering world-class events with the highest safety protocols; this commitment includes significantly widening aisles between exhibition stands and enforcing strict maximum capacity limits across the entire 20-hall show.
This is the first in-person event for the global industry since the 25th edition of Gulfood in February 2020.
How many exhibitors are signed up? How does this compare to previous years?
Gulfood 2021 has enlisted over 2,500 F&B companies, suppliers, and producers from 85 countries – a firm indicator of both industry confidence and trade professionals’ collective appetite to converge and conduct business at the sector’s first live in-person event of the year despite heightened difficulties in travel.
This industry confidence is reflected in the attendance of government ministers, national trade delegations and an extensive list of industry c-suite executives, in addition to the participation of 110 high-profile speakers, and celebrity chefs, providing invaluable insights and new-normal perspectives across a range of content-rich platforms running alongside the exhibition. This high-level global commitment reinforces the influence of Gulfood and underlines the importance of face-to-face interaction to fully explore the business potential of an industry gripped by transformation.
How many visitors are signed up? How does this compare to previous years?
Due to ongoing travel restrictions in some of the show’s historic source markets and our own capacity restrictions across the venue, it is inevitable and expected that regional and international visitor attendance will be impacted this year. However, early registrations are tracking very well, continuing the strong trend experienced at GITEX Technology Week, held in December 2020. The only global in-person global tech event of 2020, GITEX welcomed tens of thousands of visitors.
Gulfood, returns to the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) for its 26th edition next week.
Local, regional and international buyers are coming back to the show with early forecasts indicating significant scope for major order potential to help rejuvenate the sector and roadmap a recovery. This underlines the tremendous confidence of the global business community in Dubai World Trade Centre events. We continue to observe trends in event participation to continue delivering the best experiences.
How much damage has been done to the F&B industry as a result of the coronavirus crisis?
The F&B industry spans multiple sectors, and the Covid-19 pandemic has affected different parts of the industry in different ways – but it is clear that the long-term opportunities that have been created outweigh the short-term challenges posed by the pandemic.
Global lockdowns restricted the movement of people, impacting manufacturers, retailers, and restaurants, which directly disrupted the global supply chain and sales models. However, the challenges of the past 12 months have generated numerous opportunities and triggered an industry rethink on how best to maintain business continuity and put food on the tables of end consumers in such circumstances. The pandemic has also accelerated the development of new technologies which are transforming multiple aspects of the F&B industry, including an improved customer experience, sustainability and building smarter supply chains.
With the significance of food security and food safety amplified, governments, decision makers and F&B producers have responded with great determination and innovation. Online grocery providers and food delivery services are just two segments that have thrived, and companies that have embraced the challenges to proactively manage risk have been successful in minimising the impact and will move forward with greater resilience.
What (if any) are the positives to take from the last 12 months?
Agile manufacturers who listen to the consumer and stay abreast of their ever-evolving habits have been seen to retain a competitive edge. Demonstrating a commitment to the highest standards of health and hygiene in all facets of operations has taken on even more importance. Industry players who have optimised new technologies, from automation to AI and beyond, will continue to operate successfully. The emergence of contactless payments, online grocery purchasing, and delivery apps have indefinitely changed the way we shop and eat.
The challenges of the past 12 months have also seen food security rise further up both government and consumer agendas, particularly in the GCC. The UAE National Food Security Strategy visualises the country ranking among the top 10 of the Global Food Security Index. Immediate food security goals include enhancing local food production and engaging partners to diversify F&B resources, while enacting policies and processes to reduce waste and improve nutritional impact.
Transparency, whether in clean ingredients or ethical and responsible sourcing, is also climbing. Consumer demand for transparency in supply chains has never been greater and this trend looks set to continue beyond the pandemic.
Recent global developments have taken the trend of prioritising immune health to new levels. With continued uncertainty surrounding Covid-19, we can expect more consumers to be on the lookout for foods that boost immune health.
When do you expect to see a recovery in the industry?
The pandemic has impacted global supply chains, from production and transportation, to processes and stock availability for end consumers. However, the sector has responded in a robust manner with innovation, determination, and product and process transformation, all of which will be front and centre at Gulfood 2021.
Flexibility and adaptability have proved to be the key driving forces for the industry to successfully overcome the challenges. Technological advancements and the emergence of virtual meetings and conferences have helped facilitate business continuity. However, there is no doubting the value of physical, in-person meetings in reconnecting and starting anew, which is why Gulfood 2021 is set to take a leading role in driving recovery and helping the F&B sector adapt and thrive.
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