Alimentaria Barcelona 2008

Alimentaria looks to its next edition with a comprehensive reorganisation The Future Shop in Innoval, The Spain of Cured Iberian Meat Products and the Tapas & Gastronomy section are among the show’s new features

Alimentaria, the International Food and Beverage Exhibition, is once again preparing to turn Barcelona into the world’s food and beverage capital. The event will take place 10 - 14 March 2008 at Fira Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain), with 85% of the Spanish food and beverage industry expected to be there. For this new edition, the show’s organisers have undertaken to reorganise the exhibition space. For the first time since the show has been held in two venues, due to their increasing growth, the Intercarn and Restaurama shows will be located in Montjuic, while the rest of the sectors with be grouped together in the modern Gran Vía venue.

Between March 10 and 14, 2008, the food and beverage industry will gather in the 131,200 m2 of exhibition and activity space that make up Alimentaria. Over 155,000 visitors, close to 5,000 exhibitors and 167 million euros in revenue for the city of Barcelona are anticipated to be some of the figures which will accompany the seventeenth edition of Spain’s most important trade show, one of the world’s leading events of its kind.

The shows which focus on meat products and the food & hospitality channel will be the main stars of Alimentaria 2008. Situating Intercarn (International Meat and Meat Products Exhibition) and Restaurama (International Food & Hospitality Exhibition) at Fira Barcelona’s Montjuic venue will reinforce the organic growth of these two sectors and enable them to be as specialised as possible. Concentrating the remaining exhibitions – 13 in total – in Gran Vía will enable exhibitors to benefit from substantially greater synergies between different areas of production. This new exhibition location will create a favourable atmosphere for Alimentaria to experience significant growth, supported primarily by Intercarn – a specialised exhibition – and Restaurama – a vertical trade show.

New activities
Alimentaria 2008 will mark the beginning of a number of activities. Future Shop at Innoval – a recreation of tomorrow’s distribution points, the exhibition The Spain of Cured Iberian Meat Products, the Tapas & Gastronomy space, the Confectionery and Sandwiches exhibition and the International Pizza Contest are just some of the most noteworthy new features.

In addition, Alimentaria 2008 will be reinforcing the elements which give the show its most creative personality and make it a platform for research, development and innovation. Classic offerings such as BCN Vanguardia, Vinorum, the International Food and Hospitality Exhibition, the International Mediterranean Diet Congress, The Oils of Spain  The Spain of 100 Cheeses and the Interpesca Conference will once again be in the sector’s spotlight.

An international force
In 2008, internationalisation will continue to be one of Alimentaria’s key structural elements. Cooperation, distribution and innovation projects involving the countries of Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe and Asia, as well as the United States and Canada will once again have a strong presence.

Alimentaria is a truly international business centre. In addition to being the Spanish trade show which welcomes the largest number of foreign professionals, the International Food and Beverage Exhibition ranks third among international trade shows in the sector. According to the organisers’ forecasts, the attendance of 33,000 professionals and over 1,500 exhibitors from other countries will confirm Alimentaria’s status as a world reference.

In total, over 17,000 m2 of the 131,200 m2 of net exhibition space at Alimentaria 2008 will be allocated to foreign exhibitors, who will come from 70 countries and virtually every continent.

In addition to internationalisation, through its 15 shows, the exhibition organisers are focusing especially on strengthening Alimentaria’s strategic values: innovation, professionalisation and division into sectors. These are the four foundations of the exhibition, and the secret of its successful trade show model.

About Alimentaria Exhibitions
Alimentaria benefits from the experience and know-how of an exceptional trade show organiser: Alimentaria Exhibitions. This main trade fairs which make up this company are Alimentaria, Barcelona Degusta (Barcelona Tastes) and Barcelona Food Technology (Bta) in Barcelona; Alimentaria Lisbon, in Portugal; Alimentaria Mexico, in Mexico City; and the latest addition (October 2007), Alimentaria Mercosur, in Argentina.