ONE OF THE MOST IMPRESSIVE AND BRIGHT EXHIBITION EVENTS IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY - THE 24TH KAZAKHSTAN INTERNATIONAL FOOD INDUSTRY EXHIBITION - INTERFOOD ASTANA 2024 - ENDED IN ASTANA.
FROM MAY 29 TO 31, 27 EU MEMBER STATES AND MORE THAN 80 COMPANIES FROM 12 COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD PRESENTED A WIDE RANGE OF FOOD PRODUCTS AND BEVERAGES AT THE EXPO IEC. OVER THE THREE EXHIBITION DAYS, 2,014 PEOPLE BECAME UNIQUE VISITORS.
InterFood Astana is a large-scale event that brings together participants and visitors from around the world, creating a platform for a wide exchange of experiences, ideas and innovations in the food industry. The 2024 exposition was presented by manufacturers from Belarus, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Kazakhstan, China, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Singapore, Turkmenistan, and the Czech Republic. Among the exhibitors there were 21 companies from Kazakhstan and 59 foreign companies, which confirms the significance of the expo event on the international platform. This year, 15 manufacturers from Guizhou Province (China) and the Hungarian Export Promotion Association (HEPA), at whose stand 8 Hungarian manufacturers presented their products, made their debut at the exhibition. Manufacturers from Belarus and China presented unified national stands. During the exhibition, partnership agreements between the countries were concluded and successful negotiations were held.
- This is our first time at this exhibition and our first time presenting Hungarian products at our stand. At the exhibition we held very successful negotiations and preliminary agreements. We are very pleased with the organization of the exhibition. I think that the Kazakhstani market is interested in new technologies, new products, modern goods from Hungary. A lot of visitors were interested, and I can say with confidence that the majority of visitors to the exhibition gathered at our stand. We have great interest in the Kazakhstani market, so we are planning to participate in the exhibition next year, Madari Akos, Senior Export Advisor, Hepa Hungarian Export Promotion Agency, shared his impressions.
The main partner of this year’s event was the European Union, acting in the status of “Honorary Region”. A presentation pavilion of European goods from manufacturers from 27 EU member states was organized for exhibition visitors, and a European business delegation of 40 honored guests - entrepreneurs from the agri-food sector and representatives of EU industry associations - prepared an extensive program of business meetings at the InterFood Astana exhibition. The presentation pavilion of the European Union has become the central platform for demonstrating advanced technologies and products from European manufacturers.
On the first day of the exhibition, an introductory tour was held with the participation of the honorary guests of the exhibition, Aidarbek Saparov, the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Janusz Wojciechowski, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Boris Danilenko, the Director of the Iteca Exhibition Company, the Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belgium, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Switzerland, Sweden in Kazakhstan. Also, representatives of the EU countries and Kazakhstan held a number of bilateral business meetings with the aim of establishing mutually beneficial cooperation and expanding trade relations.
All days of the exhibition, a busy business program was held at the platform for participants and visitors. On May 29, a panel session “Export and import in the food industry market - cooperation of Kazakhstani companies with international markets” was held, where managers of domestic companies and representatives of EU companies, among the speakers, discussed specific recommendations for the development of support programs for entrepreneurs, taking into account current economic conditions, in a dialogue format, analyzed and discussed strategies for exporting Kazakhstani products and outlined prospects for expanding business in the food industry.
The main attention was attracted by the Plenary session “Cooperation between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the EU in the field of agriculture and food industry” with the participation of A. Saparov, the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and J. Wojciechowski, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture, where they discussed the prospects for international cooperation, the economic and environmental benefits of interstate market partnership.
On May 30, industry experts spoke on the topics “Subtleties of franchising in the Kazakhstani market” and “AI in the agro-industrial complex: from analysis to action - new approaches to managing and selling products in the agriculture and food industry” as part of Expert Talks. Business negotiations between manufacturers and republican and regional retail chains and distributors traditionally took place at the exhibition platform. The business program also included speeches from industry experts, specialized master classes, performances from participating companies - tastings, culinary master classes, demonstrations of equipment operation, and presentations of advanced technologies.
The InterFood Astana 2024 exhibition has become a center for interaction between participants from Kazakhstan and other countries, providing participants and visitors with a valuable opportunity to exchange experiences, find new partners, and learn about the latest trends in the food industry on one platform.
Another innovation this year was the launch of the ITECA.EVENTS mobile application, the main task of which is to create ideal business communications between visitors and participants with the ability to schedule meetings and collect leads. In short, ITECA.EVENTS is the entire exhibition in digital format on your personal device.
Official support for the event was provided by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Akimat of Astana.
The event was organized by Iteca Kazakhstan Exhibition Company and its international partner - ICA Events Group of Companies.
