The 27th Hong Kong Food Expo, featuring a wide range of international and local delicacies, the Food fair is a feast for foodies. Held together with Hong Kong International Tea Fair and Home Delights Expo, last from August 11-15 2016, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Trade fairs in August every year for mass consumers and trade buyers to source a wide variety of products, to further enhance the shopping experience of the public, and provide a one-stop platform for industry players to create crossover business possibilities and exchange market knowledge.

This year, the first edition of Beauty & Wellness Expo also launch, a brand-new event embracing everything from skincare to cosmetics and fitness equipment. Meanwhile, the premier two-day conference for the Chinese medicine community, the International Conference of the Modernization of Chinese Medicine & Health Products (ICMCM), co-organised by Modernized Chinese Medicine International Association Ltd (MCMIA), was held on 11 and 12 August 2016.

Hong Kong Food Expo 2016
The 27th edition of Food Expo features delicacies from close to 1,400 exhibitors from 25 countries and regions. With exhibitors from Croatia, Finland and Iceland joining the fair for the first time, food lovers can expect a greater variety of products.

The Food Expo presents a feast of business opportunities with a record of nearly 1,400 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions taking part, and welcome some 20,000 trade buyers from around the world to the fair this year. Trendy and quality products, gather the latest market intelligence and expand their business networks, can be found all under one very large roof.

Hong Kong is a convenient and ideal place to trade and do business while the expo is effective in drawing buyers every year. The Food Expo attracted a large number of visitors, including distributors, chefs and consumers all in one place to explore opportunities.

Japanese participation was the biggest ever with 320 exhibitors this year including the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), which brought more than 200 Japanese companies to the fair to present natural food, processed foodstuffs, agri-products and other items from Japan.

With the support of the Consulate General of Colombia in Hong Kong and the Consulate General of Peru in Hong Kong and Macau, the Latin America pavilion was launched for the first time at the Food Expo to introduce Latin American culinary sensations to the region.

More than 100 buying missions from over 20 countries and regions visit the Food Expo and Tea Fair this year, to source top-quality products and discover new business opportunities. A selection of local retailers and agents, including 759 Store, Sun Wah Japanese Food Ltd, Café Deco Group and DCH Logistics Co Ltd have set up buyers’ booths at the fairground for pre-arranged business matching meetings with exhibitors. This gives exhibitors the chance to connect with high-quality buyers and increase product exposure, while buyers are able to source products more efficiently.

The Food Expo spotlight Hong Kong’s reputation as a business hub and lifestyle trendsetter in Asia. By bringing high-quality products and lifestyle solutions to consumers and trade buyers, each striving to help consumers enjoy a better and healthier lifestyle.

Food Expo comprises three sections including Trade Hall, Gourmet Zone and Public Hall. The Trade Hall dedicated to professional trade buyers on the first two days to explore business opportunities and establish partnerships with the exhibitors. Exhibitors are manufacturers, wholesalers, suppliers, brokers and agencies with products for sampling and sourcing negotiation.

This year, The Trade Hall features a specialized new Chinese Medicine Zone, in association with the ICMCM conference, to showcase related products. Besides, the Halal Food Zone and the Food and Agricultural Technology Zone introduced last year return to showcase sector-specific products, services and technologies.

The international pavilionsfeaturing flavours from around the world under different themes, including Chinese mainland, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Poland, Ukraine and the USA to showcase their local food and beverages to potential trade buyers. A wide variety of gourmet treats was on display including the top-tier Japanese sake “Juyondai Honmaru Kiri”, traditional Italian vinegar vomFASS and snail caviar from Malaga, Spain.

The zone add a new theme this year, Green Palate, spotlighting organic and green food in response to growing demand for healthy meals.

Gourmet Zone targets at public visitors craving for high-end delicacies. The Zone gather over 70 exhibitors under the themes of Asian Cuisine, Chic & More, Sweet Delight, Western Delicacy and a new theme to be launched this year, Green Palate, to feature organic and green food.

The Public Hall highlight is the Premium Food Zone, featuring an array of popular local brands including Chewy, Kee Wah Bakery, Maxim’s, Nissin, On Kee Dry Seafood, Taipan Bread & Cakes, Tung Chun and Vita Green Health Products.

Apart from local brands, the Public Hall feature international pavilions including Canada, the Chinese mainland, Japan, Korea and the Philippines.

Visitors can find exquisite products such as Alfa One rice bran oil which, in 2011, was the bestselling rice bran oil in New Zealand and won the Grocer Gold Award in London. Other exhibits include the popular Hanjuku Kobo cheese tarts and “Prime Rice” which was served as a tribute to the Emperor of Japan in the past.

During the fair period, a wide variety of events was organised to engage with the visitors. These include onsite cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs, sharing by renowned food reviewers, seminars on food industry topics and many more.

Events include cooking demonstrations by star chefs (such as Alvin Leung, a 3-star Michelin chef from Bo Innovation, Alice Chan, a popular cookery programme host, and Esther Au aka “Truffle Queen” and owner of Dolce Dolce Kitchen & Gourmet), sharing sessions by famous food critics, the launch of the 2016 – 2017 Wan Chai à La Carte, La Commanderie des Cordons Bleus de France and GHM Recommendation Restaurant Award Ceremony 2016, Q-Mark Selfie – Food Styling Competition with TV Stars, as well as seminars on “Hong Kong Green Purchasing – Food and Beverage Sector” and “Explore the latest Trend in Food Sustainability”, highlighting the latest trend in the food industry.

Hong Kong Tea Fair 2016
The 8th edition of Hong Kong International Tea Fair run from 11 to 13 August, gathering more than 200 exhibitors from different countries and regions, including the Chinese mainland, India, Japan and Sri Lanka, which are renowned for their quality tea.

Hong Kong International Tea Fair has long been a premier platform for promoting business in the tea industry. Exhibitors present their related tea products, including tea, tea packaging, tea processing equipment and testing services, tea ware, tea craft and tea technology, as well as introduce their unique tea culture to visitors. Visitors can also enjoy tea-food pairing experience at the Friends of Tea zone, where bakery products, sweets, snacks and biscuits was showcased.

To promote tea trading and culture, a series of events was held during the fair. One of the must-not-miss events is the International Tea Competition 2016. Through blind-tasting, a panel of professional judges will review the tea entries of different categories such as Black Tea, Pu’er Tea, Aged Tea and Green tea among others.

Another event highlight is the International KamCha Competition (Hong Kong Style-Milk Tea) International Final, which take place on 13 August. Hong Kong and regional champions from Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Melbourne and Toronto fight for the winning title.

Other events include tea tasting sessions, international tea cupping, tea art performances, seminar and tea forum series on related topics to be delivered by industry experts.

ICMCM 2016
Co-organised by the HKTDC and the Modernized Chinese Medicine International Association Ltd (MCMIA), the International Conference of the Modernization of Chinese Medicine & Health Products (ICMCM) take place on 11 and 12 August to keep practitioners abreast of the latest trends and developments.

Heavyweight speakers from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau and the Netherlands share views on the opportunities from “Belt & Road Initiatives” and also the latest findings on research and development, regulations and legislations, commercialization and product development of the Chinese medicine industry.

HKTDC
Established in 1966, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body dedicated to creating opportunities for Hong Kong’s businesses. With more than 40 offices globally, including 13 on the Chinese mainland, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a platform for doing business with China, Asia and the world. With 50 years of experience, the HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to provide companies, particularly SMEs, with business opportunities on the mainland and in international markets, while providing information via trade publications, research reports and digital channels including the media room.