The show promotes technology transfer between companies and research centres
FoodTech Barcelona is back with a wider offer and new business opportunities
For yet another year, FoodTech Barcelona is set to showcase the latest food industry solutions and innovations, focusing on all aspects of food production from ingredients to the manufacturing process, including packaging and arrival at the point of sale. Fira de Barcelona is set to host this Spanish benchmark event from 8-11 May 2018 which, as in previous years, will coincide with the Hispack International Packaging Exhibition. It will also include new sectors and businesses connected with sustainability, innovation and the Internet of Things as applied to the food industry.
FoodTech Barcelona is the new name for a trade show that has built up a sound, prestigious track record since its creation in 1984 as BTA (Barcelona Tecnologías de la Alimentación), and it now aims to reaffirm itself as a reference point for the food equipment and technology industry. In synergy with the Food Show and all the other trade fairs run by Alimentaria Exhibitions, FoodTech Barcelona is a unique event for all food industry operators.
‘FoodTech Barcelona is Spain’s most emblematic fair for the food machinery and technology industry’, says its Chairman Llucià Casellas, who is also the Managing Director of Roser Construcciones Metálicas, S.A. Bringing together the most important companies in the sector, the show is backed by the main associations, technology centres and Spanish institutions in this field, some of them represented on the exhibition’s Organising Committee, such as Gea Iberia, Multivac Packaging Systems España, Intecal, Innovac, Hiperbaric, Milla Masanas, Brentag Química, Aecoc, Irta and Amec.
FoodTech Barcelona will coincide with the Hispack show once again and it will be a business, knowledge and networking hub for the packaging and food technology industries. The two shows will occupy five halls of Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Vía venue.
A wider offer in all three sectors
The three exhibitions making up FoodTech Barcelona 2018, each showcasing a different sector, will all have a more extensive offer than before.
Tecno Cárnica will display different solutions ranging from technology and equipment for abattoirs and cutting plants to finished product presentation, including industrial cooling processes and hygiene and safety systems.
The Food Technology area will feature the latest innovations in technology systems for improving food manufacturing processes, taking into account aspects such as traceability, quality control systems, safety, environmental protection and industrial cooling.
TecnoIngredientes will host state-of-the-art developments in additives, flavouring, food enrichers and intermediate products. ‘In 2018 this sector is expected to see an increase in the number of companies attending, encouraged by its good performance, with a turnover of more than 400 million euros a year’, says Susana Gibert, the exhibition’s director.
FoodTech Barcelona will also feature machinery and technology for the dairy, canning, cooling and industrial cleaning industries, waste processing, logistics processes and environmental solutions for the food industry. Equipment, technology and machinery for the bakery and confectionery sectors will also be on show, and these two sectors account for almost 20% of visitors to the exhibition. In the last few years, the bakery and confectionery markets have undergone major changes to adapt to the evolving tastes of consumers, who increasingly seek healthy products with special characteristics: free from hydrogenated fats, sugar-free, low-salt, gluten-free, high-fibre, etc. According to the Ministry of Food, Fishing and the Environment, the consumption of bread, cakes and confectionery products accounts for 7.7% of the household food budget in Spain today, with bread alone making up 5.7% of this expenditure item.
Innovation, business and technology transfer
Around 600 different brands will be represented at FoodTech Barcelona, showcasing their latest models and launches. Over 38,000 professionals are expected to attend and around 1,000 business meetings will be held between exhibitors and visitors. The organisation expects 25% of the exhibitor companies and 10% of the visiting professionals to be from countries other than Spain.
Another of FoodTech Barcelona’s priorities will be to promote business meetings between researchers and companies, with a view to encouraging technology transfer and research in the sector. Over 40% of visitors are in charge of R&D&I at their respective companies.
For the second year running, Food Tech will acknowledge innovation and enterprising character of companies in the industry, with the Innova and Emprende awards. These two awards aim to encourage entrepreneurship among industry professionals, spotlighting projects and companies that stimulate the food industry and contribute to its competitiveness.
Also, the Innovation Meeting Point activity area will host a series of conferences with a view to promoting more sustainable production systems, fostering more efficient resource consumption, encouraging technology transfer and revealing the main trends in food processing, handling and manufacturing. Sustainability and the food industry 4.0 will also be featured.
Barcelona, April 2017