Anuga 2019 opens its doors today, and does so by celebrating 100 years of history. It is an exceptional achievement for one of the most important international trade platforms dedicated to the world of food&beverage. The event has in fact given rise to a gigantic network, a real system where demand and supply meet not only for food and beverages, but also for all the technologies and services that are part of the world’s great agri-food industry, from production to distribution. This year the exhibition will set new records: about 7,500 exhibitors, more than a thousand of which from Italy, and over 165,000 visitors will attend the show.
ITALIAN FOOD COMPANIES PROTAGONISTS AT ANUGA
Italy will be once again the protagonist at Anuga-Koelnmesse. More than a thousand Italian companies are attending the fair, 200 of which in the collective organized by Koelnmesse Italia which is divided into different product areas. Two hundred other companies have chosen to display their products in the ICE-Italian Trade Agency space (Hall 11.2). There are also many groups, including Consorzio Italia del Gusto, Parma Alimentare, Il Buon Gusto Italiano, Arsial-Regione Lazio, Regione Campania, Regione Calabria, Regione Lombardia, Afidop-Assolatte, Consorzio il Biologico and IDM Südtirol.
“As always, Italy has a lot to say in the agri-food sector”, commented Thomas Rosolia, managing director of Koelnmesse Italia. “The excellence of our country undoubtedly establishes real points of reference in terms of taste and pleasure, but also industrial capacity, attention to markets, service to the complex fabric of international distribution. These are a fundamental part of the commitment of a modern business looking to an increasingly global market. Koelnmesse, as the long history of Anuga also shows, proposes a partnership thanks to which it is possible to be protagonists in many markets, thanks to acknowledged competence and professionalism.”
GLOBAL TRENDS ON DISPLAY
Anuga is certainly the best observatory to look at the evolution of food & beverage. According to a survey conducted by Innova Market in 2018, 23 per cent of new products on the market bear the words “does not contain …”, whether it is oils, gluten or other substances. This is a growing trend, especially in Europe and the United States. Demand for Halal (in compliance with Islamic dietary rules, a supply that is growing by more than 10 percent each year) certified foods and beverages is also growing, as well as Kosher (in compliance with the Jewish religion dietary rules).
In 2018, new GMO-free products also grew by 5%, as did the creation of more natural foods and beverages with precise indications of their origin. Furthermore, there is an increasing search for ready meals. Especially for high quality, healthy ones which are capable of bringing the right nutrients to the body. Under the spotlight also superfoods, starting with grains (sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, quinoa, flaxseed, as well as “old grains”) with special nutritional characteristics that can ensure added value in terms of welfare. Their growth was 12 percent per year in the period 2014-2018.