Trần Phú Lữ, deputy director of HCM City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre, speaks about the HCMC FOODEX 2022 at a press conference in HCM City last week. Photo courtesy of the centre

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HCM CITY — The HCMC FOODEX 2022, Việt Nam’s leading food and beverage (F&B) trade show, will take place next month in HCM City from October 19-22.

Featuring some 300 booths, the expo will play host to more than 300 local and international exhibitors and is expected to attract 18,000 visitors.

Products to be on display include raw or lightly processed food products (such as agricultural products, seafood, spices); deeply processed food; beverages; raw materials used in the food processing industry; and machinery and equipment for food production, packaging and preservation.

Speaking at a press conference in HCM City last week, Trần Phú Lữ, deputy director of HCM City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre (ITPC), said the fair would provide fresh opportunities for buyers, suppliers, exhibitors and consumers around the world.

Vietnamese F&B businesses needed to embrace digital transformation and apply advanced technology to food production to improve competitiveness, product quality, and expand domestic and export markets, he said.

Lý Kim Chi, chairwoman of the HCM City Food and Foodstuff Association, said Vietnamese F&B enterprises had great advantages to develop the domestic market and export to major markets in the world.

Việt Nam exports agricultural and aquatic products, and processed foods to more than 190 countries and territories, of which the US, China, Japan, South Korea are major trading partners.

Chi, however, pointed out some challenges facing Vietnamese exporters such as the pandemic and the prolonged Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has increased the cost of production materials and logistics.

Other problems included strict technical barriers from export markets and the impact of climate change, which has affected food production, she noted.

She recommended businesses ensure traceability of the origin of products, improve labour productivity, and enhance product quality to meet strict requirements from choosy export markets.

At the expo, there will be on-site performances of processing and making special dishes and drinks from Vietnamese and international businesses, along with seminars about opportunities and challenges driving the F&B landscape in Việt Nam and the world.

There will also be a symposium called “Development trends of the food industry” and a training workshop on “Standards of food for export to potential markets”.

The pandemic has changed the landscape of the F&B industry towards digital transformation, which has provided bright prospects for the industry when economic activities return to normal, experts say.

According to Mordor Intelligence, the local industry will expand at 8.65 per cent annually in the 2021-2026 period. The compound annual growth rate from 2021 to 2025 is projected at 4.98 per cent.

Last year, Việt Nam’s total value of F&B consumption was estimated at VNĐ816 trillion, up 10.5 per cent year-on-year, contributing about 13 per cent to the national GDP, according to Statista.

The exhibition is co-hosted by the HCM City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre, the HCM City Food and Foodstuff Association and the CIS Vietnam Advertising & Exhibition JSC. — VNS