The fourth edition of Gulfood Manufacturing 2017, the region's the Middle East’s largest ingredients, processing, packaging, and logistics exhibition, opened today (October 31) at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), in Dubai, UAE.

Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum opened the event which will run until November 2.

Touring the 80,000 sq-m show, which runs for three days, Sheikh Mansoor was given a snapshot of the global innovation and industry-defining solutions now impacting a manufacturing sector that is striving to meet sweeping changes in consumer preferences.

 The show is expected to attract tens of thousands of food supply chain professionals from more than 60 countries.

Trixie LohMirmand, senior vice president, exhibitions and events management, DWTC, said: “Consumer tastes and preferences are rapidly changing with experience, sustainability and affordability now more of a focus than ever, turning the show into the platform for reinvention of the global food manufacturing and processing sector.”

From manufacturing, processing and packaging and supply chain solutions, this year’s show lifts the lid on an extensive range of new products and concepts that will enable industry leaders to keep pace with the ever-changing consumer demands.
 
More than 1,600 exhibitors from 60 plus countries will be showcasing their products and services, including 30 national pavilions, with first-time participation from countries including Poland and across the CIS.

LohMirmand added: “The continued growth in the show’s participation highlights how the world’s leading equipment, ingredients, logistics and chain suppliers view Gulfood Manufacturing as the preferred platform to leverage an operational foothold in the regional market.”

“Dubai continues to offer a supremely stable base in which to do business, backed by a visionary leadership and a government that is committed to investment and diversification of the economy as part of its long-term future growth strategy,” she added.

The international influence of the event is evidenced with the show hosting the biggest Italian participation in its history, with 3,800-sq-m dedicated to companies spanning all sections of the country’s food manufacturing and equipment industry supply chain, said the organisers.

All the major manufacturing players are present, including Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Malaysia, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, US and the UK.

China, meanwhile, has also brought its biggest participation to date as the Far East giant challenges the status quo across the industry.

This year’s show features five dedicated sectors: ingredients, processing, packaging, supply chain solutions, and for the first time, a focused automation and controls sector, which will highlight how automation and robotics are revolutionizing the industry.

In addition to the exhibition, Gulfood Manufacturing 2017 is hosting the Business Talks Conference, which began today and features three keynote addresses and four symposiums. Renowned thought leaders and market analysts will discuss and debate the burning issues and give delegates a greater understanding of the industry’s future, it said.

The show also features a Big Buyers Programme, hosting more than 2,000 pre-qualified serious buyers - one of the region’s biggest hosted buyer programmes – with a pre-determined budget to spend with exhibitors, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service