SAYONI BHADURI – Mumbai
“Food industry has grown tremendously,” said Suresh Shetty, minister of health, government of Maharashtra, as he inaugurated Food Hospitality World 2013 Mumbai (FHW), India’s leading hospitality trade show. He added, “People are travelling abroad extensively and have developed a taste for new cuisines. The FDI will also give a tremendous boost to horticulture and food based products, especially in the areas of transport and warehousing,” he said, “More events like FHW should take place in Mumbai.” Shetty was accompanied by Anuradha Agrawal, VP, The Indian Express, Felice Invernizzi, corporate marketing director, Group Commercial department, Fiera Milano and Mel Lanvers-Shah, MD, Hanover Milano Fairs India at the inauguration. In its 19th edition FHW 2013 Mumbai is being held at MMRDA Grounds, Bandra Kurla Complex from January 10 – 12, 2013.
The trade exhibition specialising in hospitality and food industry is showcasing 200 national exhibitors and 50 international exhibitors and five country pavilions. Neeraj Sheth, MD, Celfrost said, “Exhibitions like these have helped us grow our business.” Apart from Celfrost, other participants include RAK Ceramics; FNS International; Star White Laundry, Aura Essentials, Mittal International, Shanti Metals, Kitchen Solutions, Lavazza, Kamani Oils, Springfit, Oasis Ceramics, etc. Some of the international suppliers include Fungo e Tartufo, Elframo, Salumificio Gandolfi, Dr Schär, Schreyoegg, Kellerei St Pauls, Fuchs J, Frulana, Gruppo Izzo, Casa Vinicola Caldirola, Galantino, La delizia 2000, Divella, etc. Markus Walder, manager international trade support, Export Organisation South Tyrol of the Chamber of Commerce of Bozen said, “This is our third business trip to India and first with food products. The potential in India for growth is huge despite being a difficult market.” Also participating is Kerala Bureau of Industrial Promotion; Suraj S Nair, manager and nodal officer, NCHC added, “We are trying to help SMEs in food industry to increase their reach to newer markets by participating in shows like FHW. We provide these SMEs free space to showcase their products.”
The highly specialised exhibition is also playing host to Great Indian Culinary Challenge (GICC) – a contest of skill, finesse and presentation from the region’s most talented chefs. More than 150 chefs from various leading hotels and hotel management institutes are competing at GICC this year; they will be awarded for their endeavours on the last day of the trade show. The competition is supported by Western India Culinary Association (WICA) and King Metal Works. “This is year focus of GICC is on Indian main course cooking which is a move away from the regular live cooking we did in the past. This year there is a visible increase in the quality of participation. The competition is also more difficult and challenging this year,” said Chef Salil Fadnis, executive chef, Sahara Star Mumbai and secretary of WICA. Other featured events include panel discussions like Hospitality Knowledge Exchange on bartending and mixology – ‘Raising the Bar’; Hospitality Think Tank on hotel sales and marketing – ‘Hotels sales: How savvy is your strategy?’ and Power of Purchase for the purchase managers’ fraternity.
FHW is organised by Global Fairs & Media – a result of an association between Fiera Milano Group and The Indian Express Ltd. The rand is a culmination of leading international trade shows Tuttofood and Host, and national exhibitions HospitalityWorld and Taste.
