The best Gulfood show draws to a close

The biggest and undoubtedly the most successful Gulfood show to date draws to a close as praises are offered from all quarters and exhibitors, eagerly planning for next year’s show.

Speaking on behalf of the contingent from Malawi, Nali’s assistant managing director, Edward Labuwa Kholomana, said that the exhibition had gone well for all of them.

“It is the first time for all of us Malawians to participate in this trade show, and there has been a lot of interest in all our products; from the sauces, teas, and coffees, to our natural forest honey,” he said.

Nestlé Professional’s trade marketing executive, Seem H. Bayyaa, said that the show had been a great opportunity for the regional team to work together.

“The exhibition has been organised well and was very smoothly run,” he added. “I just hope that we can get a bigger stand and even more space next year!”

The Fairmont Dubai senior executive sous chef, Kamal Silva, was supporting the Fairmont Dubai Hotel team at the Salon Culinaire, which was participating in various competitions including ice sculpting and chocolate carving.

Silva said that he had been impressed with the range of products on display. “I think this year has been very successful in terms of suppliers,” he said.

Churchill China export business development manager, Glenn Ewart, said the range of visitors was a big draw for exhibitors.

“The leads we take here are from serious people, and serious buyers,” he said. “We get to see not just purchasing people, but also food and beverage (F&B) directors and general managers, which makes it completely different to other trade shows,” he said.

Indeed, the success of previous editions led to the addition of the Sheikh Rashid and Sheikh Maktoum halls this year – home to a vast array of European and North American pavilions.

“This has made it easier for buyers to source their needs, and it is very visitor-friendly in terms of the layout,” said Elly Habt, Gulfood project manager.

For supporting media partner The Halal Journal, this year’s Gulfood has been a massive success especially with the level of awareness for Halal and all that it represents amongst the trade exhibitors and visitors.

“We have had streams of visitors from Day One asking about how best their companies can utilise the Malaysian Halal logo and penetrate the global Halal market,” said Kamarul Aznam Kamaruzaman, Managing Editor of the international magazine.

One thousand copies of The Halal Journal – with special cover issue for Gulfood 2008 – was distributed specifically for the event, profiling Malaysian Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC) and several Malaysian Halal manufacturers, including Prima Agri, Aron and MM Vitaoils Sdn Bhd.

“Our partnership with HDC has been highly beneficial as we are able to cross-promote their new international Halal standards for these global companies, as well as help promote attendance to the World Halal Forum this May,” Kamarul added.

Many of Gulfood’s most popular features, like Salon Culinaire, are back for 2008. The Dubai International Food Safety Conference, organised by Dubai Municipality, is running for the third time with renowned international speakers examining the challenges and issues faced by the Middle East’s catering market, drawing roughly 600 participants.

The 13th edition of this trade-only show was sold out in January, and featured more than 2,500 companies that filled the entire Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

In the words of the organisers, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), Gulfood is fast becoming “one of the largest and most international trade shows for food and hospitality in the world.”

“Recognising the central economic and social importance of the food, drink, and hospitality sectors to the region, we continue to ensure that Gulfood evolves to meet the needs of these industries,” said Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director General of the DWTC.

More than 86 per cent of the exhibitors are from outside the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and a number of the country pavilions are making their debut, including Ecuador, Hungary, Lithuania, Malawi, Northern Ireland, Poland, Switzerland and Uruguay.