Post press release

The international specialised exhibitions for the food and processing industries Interfood and Prodtech took place on April 5 – 7 St. Petersburg, Russia. 124 companies from 9 countries participated in the events; they represented Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Latvia, Greece, Germany, Poland, Pakistan and Indonesia. Most of the companies have launched the market of the Russian North-West for the first time and chosen these exhibitions for the start launch. The expositions featured the whole production chain: starting with food equipment and technology to ready-to-cook and -to eat products, its packaging and storage technologies.

The ProdTech exhibition has demonstrated equipment and components for the bakery and confectionery industry, mixing equipment, dispersal and homogenization equipment, equipment for mayonnaise production, food emulsions, sauces and tomato paste, spray driers, production lines and drive belts, the whole range of industrial fittings, sanitary and hygienic equipment and wholesale as well, stretch wrapping equipment and packaging lines, the latest achievements in marking and identification. Solutions for gas and gas mixtures for the food industry were presented by AIR LIQUIDE who has for the first time exhibited at InterFood.

The German company Weber participation was considered as a real novelty for the exhibition. Weber produces meat and cheese slicers – already used by leading European companies, and a wide range of skinning machines and ice making machines. The company for the first time has taken part in the exhibition and brought unique samples of equipment to the Russian market.

This year exhibitors include: Agrokomplekt Group, Russkaya Trapeza, IKA WERKE GmbH, Aizenhause LLC, Kipp, Neumo CIS, TIS, ICF&Welko, EST (Ecology. Science. Technology) research and production company, Rocla Rus, Termopack, Termopak-Nord, Alfapak packaging equipment plant, VA Instruments Co Ltd, Institute of Electrical Drop-Jet Technologies, Markem-Imaje Russia, Forintek-Sp, Western Machinery of St. Petersburg and many others.

Moreover, the Prodtech exhibition has offered to producers a wide choice of food packages and labels for confectionaries (blisters, box inserts), desserts, ice cream, salads and ready-to-cook products, eggs, meat, fish and sea products – were demonstrated by Granpack SPb, MilCo St. Petersburg, Multivak Rus, Okil , Okhta, Production Line, Rosk publishing house, Svetlogorsk pulp and board plant, Uniplastic, Spolium, Strlets Business group.

The companies Innocap and Citadel (YogurtBox project) have presented innovative packaging samples.

The InterFood exhibition this year celebrates its jubilee: for over 15 years it promotes quality products of domestic and foreign manufacturers to the Russian market.

This year our exhibitors presented canned vegetables from Ukraine, fruit from Greece, little known to the Russian consumer Pakistan rice, various products from Indonesia (exotic sauces, tea, spice), Latvian juices and non-alcoholic drinks, confectionaries, bakery and dairy products, meat products and ready-to-eat and –to cook products, oils from Rostov-on-Don and Krasnodar, tea, coffee, healthy foods – both for B2B and B2C markets.

Lakomka confectionary plant (St. Petersburg) was a partner of the InterFood exhibition. The company offers the technology of printing various pictures directly on a glazed pryanik (gingerbread) or cookie without using additional materials, especially, sugar paper. Such printing technology is unique in Russia. Lakomka has cooked delicious memento gifts for the exhibition visitors and guests and a jubilee cake for the evening buffet of the exhibition opening ceremony.

Our exhibitors were Agrotech-M, Prostor, Aston, YuNK-Agroproduct, Vladam farm, Gourmet-product, Dom Kofe, NADIN tea company №1, Biotechinkor, CIDO Grupa, Igristie Vina, U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), Baltptitseprom, Victoria group and others. The following Belarusian companies have traditionally participated in the exhibition: Berezino Cheese-Making Plant, Mozyr Dairy Products, Zhlobin Meat Processing and Packing Plant, Krasny Pischevik, RUIE Brestkhlebprom, Borisov Bakery Plant, Borisov Meat Processing Plant, Kalinkovichi Meat-Processing Plant.

A wide choice of dairy products, vegetables, poultry products were demonstrated by manufacturing companies of the Leningrad region: St. Petersburg dairy plant Piskarevskiy, Lenoblptitseprom, Perepelochka farming company, Prinevskoye stud farm, Rosa agricultural company and many others. The Guild of Bakers of the Leningrad region has presented viennoseries.

The InterFood exhibition is chosen by both large and small businesses. The later have demonstrated canned meet and vegetables, oils and honey from the farthest regions of Russia and even from Kyrgyzstan. The best food samples were presented to the jury at the Best Food Products contest and awarded medals and diplomas of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation. For the fist time of the contest history all the participants were granted awards.

Every scheduled day the exhibitions featured equipment and machines at work: packaging lines, marking equipment for egg shell, and Panetti mini-bakeries baked viennoiseries right at their stand. The following product types could be tasted at the stand: fresh viennoiseries, drinks, flavored honey; master classes on Easter cakes decoration took place there. Every exhibitor and visitor of the exhibitions could join business events that included business sections, thematic roundtables, workshops and presentations.

The School of vendors section featured reports on the present state of the small business and the consumer market disbalance, as well as on new legal and agreement aspects of the law on alcohol trade. Small (local) shops owners commented the reports; reports were made also by Anna Rukhmakova, Deputy Chairmen of the Committee of Economic Development, Industrial Policy and Trade of St. Petersburg, Alkesey Tretryakov, Council Chairman of Association of St. Petersburg Small Businesses in the Consumer Market, Y. Shrlyarsky, Chairman of the UNION Trade Enterprises Association, Yana Borovitskaya, Chairman of the Expert Council of St. Petersburg Union of Entrepreneurs, specialists of METRO Сash & Carry and others.

The Healthy Food section featured reports with the following topics: the state of the eco products market of St. Petersburg, eco standards and eco certificates, control and support of eco products manufacturers, the role of organic products in the Law on food safety of St. Petersburg, manufacture and distribution of organic vegetable prefabricated products, ecology and packaging, stimulation of packaging wastes recycling to secondary resource.

The following industry experts presented reports: A. Boyko, Chairman of the Packaging Industry Development Sub-Committee of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, CEO of National Packaging Confederation, Elena Churina, Chairman of the Export Economy Council of the Commission of Industry, Economy and Property of St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly, member of Public-Advisory Council of the Branch office of the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service of St. Petersburg, Semen Gordishevskiy, Board Chairman of St. Petersburg Ecological Union, A. German, Director of Center of products, works and services quality control, P. Bobrovsky, Vice President of the National Packaging Union.

The Success Strategy and Growth Factors section was dedicated to the issues of products quality, a new trademark creation and launch to the market, current trends in food product branding, consumer preferences and sales increase via correct positioning and brand promotion.

The specialists who keep up to the times could visit the roundtable Current trends in food products promotion using mobile technologies and the Internet. The report included: How to develop a media strategy of a FMCG-company on the Internet, Contest advertising – the way to the consumer’ heart, New reality: extended packaging – a guide for a consumer at a shelf in an shop, or your products in the cell phone. The reports were made by Svetlana Pavlova, Director General of BETA advertising agency, Galina Pozharina, Education Department Head in Begun agency, Mikhail Kissin, Director of GoodsMatrix.ru food universal portal.

The business program featured a meeting – Forming the system of technical control of countries of the Customs Union. Technical regulations in the food industry. The Matchmaking center traditionally facilitated negotiations between manufacturers and suppliers and trading companies. The exhibition program was enriched with a tour to Finland to visit packaging enterprises StoraEnso and Formeca – a modern and popular mix of tourism and business.

InterFood and ProdTech 2011 were visited by specialists from the North-Western, Central, Volga and Siberian federal districts, Belarus, Ukraine, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, Czech Republic. Our visitors are mostly – heads of the industry enterprises, technologists, development and marketing specialists, wholesale purchasing agents, representatives of shopping centers, shops and restaurants. Over 80% exhibitors have signed cooperation agreements, established new partnership relations, found new consumer markets.