Speciality & Fine Food Asia (SFFA) and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia (RPB Asia) returns for the third edition this year, breaking both visitor and exhibitor records from previous shows.
Over the three-day period from 17 - 19 July, the exhibition which was held at the Suntec City International Convention and Exhibition Centre has garnered closed to 4,200 trade visitors from the food service, retail and hospitality industries across Southeast Asia. A total of 200 local and international exhibiting companies from 27 countries and 15 national pavilions took part in the show.
I was invited for an exclusive media tour of the event where we were introduced to a line-up of gourmet and artisan exhibitors from all around the world.
Our first stop was to sample some popular Taiwanese snacks from Ivy House in Taichung City. Taichung city is located in central Taiwan which is Taiwan's second largest city. Taichung itself has a rich and historic dietary culture, and many well-known pastry, baking and tea industries.
In this exhibition, the Taichung City Government has led 7 iconic local companies to participate. They were Zhengsheng Food, Chen Yun Pao Chuan, Taiwan Hwa Gung Tea, PIPO, Ordereasy International CO., Babuu House and Ciao Pin Tang Food.
We tried the Pure Milk Shortbread from Babuu House which was like the biscuit used in ice-cream cones. Fresh milk were used in the production process and there was no milk powder, no fragrance, no colouring, no preservatives added. A total of six different flavours were developed to meet the needs of different consumers.
After snacking, we moved on to Rockland Distilleries for a taste of their high-quality Ceylon Arrack. Even their mineral water was pretty eye catching.
The booth that we spent the longest time was at the Export Promotion Agency of the Republic of Uzbekistan where we tried lots of fresh and preserved fruits and they were really sweet. We were told that they had signed up the export trade here and we should be expecting to see more fruits and goods originating from there. A total of 8 exhibitors were there. One unique find was the teabon which were individually packaged honey in a spoon.
Next, we visited IncuBaker which is Singapore's first Licensed Co-Working Kitchen. This concept is very interesting. I've heard of many co-sharing workspace but co-working kitchen was my first time.
One of the products that were hand-crafted at IncuBaker was HOGULA. Hogula is an artisan Asian-inspired brittle made with the finest palm sugar and high-quality nuts roasted to perfection. Hogula is a healthier alternative as they are handcrafted without using additives or preservatives.
Provacuno Spain - Beef from Spain was preparing some beef meat for us to try but we didn't get to try the meat as they were still cooking and not ready yet.
After visiting a few other booths, we made our way back to the Gourmet Lounge and helped ourselves to a little beer. Cheers to mid-week!
Other show highlights included the following but due to time constraint, I didn't visit them this year.
Speciality & Fine Food Asia and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia will be back again next year from 29 September to 1 October 2020, while the UK edition will take place from 1 to 3 September 2019 a t Olympia, London. Hope to be there again!
For more informations, do visit their official websites - Speciality-Asia.com and RPB-Asia.com and follow their respecive social media @Speciality_Asia and @RPB_Asia.
*Photos without watermark are official photos from the press release
XOXO
Over the three-day period from 17 - 19 July, the exhibition which was held at the Suntec City International Convention and Exhibition Centre has garnered closed to 4,200 trade visitors from the food service, retail and hospitality industries across Southeast Asia. A total of 200 local and international exhibiting companies from 27 countries and 15 national pavilions took part in the show.
I was invited for an exclusive media tour of the event where we were introduced to a line-up of gourmet and artisan exhibitors from all around the world.
Our first stop was to sample some popular Taiwanese snacks from Ivy House in Taichung City. Taichung city is located in central Taiwan which is Taiwan's second largest city. Taichung itself has a rich and historic dietary culture, and many well-known pastry, baking and tea industries.
In this exhibition, the Taichung City Government has led 7 iconic local companies to participate. They were Zhengsheng Food, Chen Yun Pao Chuan, Taiwan Hwa Gung Tea, PIPO, Ordereasy International CO., Babuu House and Ciao Pin Tang Food.
We tried the Pure Milk Shortbread from Babuu House which was like the biscuit used in ice-cream cones. Fresh milk were used in the production process and there was no milk powder, no fragrance, no colouring, no preservatives added. A total of six different flavours were developed to meet the needs of different consumers.
After snacking, we moved on to Rockland Distilleries for a taste of their high-quality Ceylon Arrack. Even their mineral water was pretty eye catching.
The booth that we spent the longest time was at the Export Promotion Agency of the Republic of Uzbekistan where we tried lots of fresh and preserved fruits and they were really sweet. We were told that they had signed up the export trade here and we should be expecting to see more fruits and goods originating from there. A total of 8 exhibitors were there. One unique find was the teabon which were individually packaged honey in a spoon.
Next, we visited IncuBaker which is Singapore's first Licensed Co-Working Kitchen. This concept is very interesting. I've heard of many co-sharing workspace but co-working kitchen was my first time.
One of the products that were hand-crafted at IncuBaker was HOGULA. Hogula is an artisan Asian-inspired brittle made with the finest palm sugar and high-quality nuts roasted to perfection. Hogula is a healthier alternative as they are handcrafted without using additives or preservatives.
Provacuno Spain - Beef from Spain was preparing some beef meat for us to try but we didn't get to try the meat as they were still cooking and not ready yet.
After visiting a few other booths, we made our way back to the Gourmet Lounge and helped ourselves to a little beer. Cheers to mid-week!
Other show highlights included the following but due to time constraint, I didn't visit them this year.
- Inaugural SG Food Tech Week - deep dive into panel sessions covering topics from food tech to blockchain and big data, as well as the rise of plant-based and clean meat and its implication on the F&B industry along with highlighting pressing topics such as the challenges and opportunities surrounding food security, safety, and sustainability and what the future holds for companies in food production.
- PITCH! - the popular 'Shark Tank' style investor pitching series returns, providing a practical springboard for companies with exciting, innovative ideas to pitch their concepts to a panel of industry judges. After an intense round of competition, bespoke 3D food printing solutions provider, Anrich3D and plant-based food solutions provider, Karana, took home the grand prize for tracks 1 and 2 respectively, each winning $3,000 in prize money and complimentary exhibition space at the 2020 show.
- Asia Food Innovation Awards by FoodBev Media - the second Asian edition of the globally-recognised Food Innovation Award. The Awards offer brands an exciting way to showcase their achievements in product and design. A full list of winners can be found here.
- Chef Demos and Hot Topic Panel Discussions at Fine Food Live - centred around themes of heritage and sustainability, and for the first time, also in collaboration with World Gourmet Summit (WGS) to curate two days of interactive programming on the second and third days
- 31st National Cocktail Competition by the Association of Bartenders & Sommeliers Singapore (ABSS) - hosted by RPB Asia and was held for the first time in the show's history
- Insights and a new SG Signature Cocktail at Centre Stage - On the final day, the top four bartenders in the NCC Classic Category were paired with four renowned bartenders to create a brand-new iconic drink to celebration Singapore's bicentennial. Each pair had to develop a cocktail inspired by, has elements of, or can be paired with one of the nation's signature dishes - Chicken Rice. Team Royal Tandem, consisting of Benedict Poh from The Monarchy and Chris Anthony Casas from Andaz Hotel, showed off impeccable teamwork and creative flair to create a concoction that won the hearts of the judges.
- Retail Industry Report by KPMG - packed full of information and insights into consumer purchase trends and the future of F&B retail
Speciality & Fine Food Asia and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia will be back again next year from 29 September to 1 October 2020, while the UK edition will take place from 1 to 3 September 2019 a t Olympia, London. Hope to be there again!
For more informations, do visit their official websites - Speciality-Asia.com and RPB-Asia.com and follow their respecive social media @Speciality_Asia and @RPB_Asia.
*Photos without watermark are official photos from the press release
XOXO
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