Events & TradeshowsNewsVol 28

SFFA & RPB Asia 2019

By February 21, 2020No Comments


SPECIALITY & FINE FOOD ASIA AND RESTAURANT, PUB & BAR ASIA CONCLUDE LARGEST-EVER SHOWS

Speciality & Fine Food Asia (SFFA) and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia (RPB Asia) capped off a third successful year, breaking both visitor and exhibitor records from previous shows. The 2019 edition drew in close to 4,200 trade visitors from the foodservice, retail and hospitality industries across Southeast Asia, with 196 local and international exhibiting companies from 27 countries and 15 national pavilions taking part over the three-day period. The trade-only shows also featured an expanded programme line-up that catered to a growing segment of the industry with the brandnew SG Food Tech Stage which focused on innovations and technology that impact the future of food. This was complemented by an outstanding line-up of insightful panel discussions, engaging cooking demos, exciting bartending displays and beverage masterclasses by various industry experts, across Fine Food Live, Centre Stage and the 31st National Cocktail Competition.


2019 SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
Inaugural SG Food Tech Week – SFFA and RPB Asia launched the first ever SG Food Tech Week, to deep dive into the world of food tech from blockchain to big data, the rise of plant-based and clean meat and its implications on the F&B industry along with highlighting pressing topics in the wider business landscape. Developed in consultation with Edelman Predictive Intelligence Centre, SG Food Tech Week saw top minds in food and beverage technologies and consultancies.

PITCH! – The popular investor pitching series, PITCH! returned to SFFA and RPB Asia this year on the SG Food Tech Week stage, providing a practical springboard for companies with exciting, innovative ideas to pitch their concepts and products to a panel of industry judges for real-time feedback. Split into two tracks – ‘Technology Innovations and Solutions’ and ‘Sustainable Solutions’, both catering to the hospitality and foodservice industries – the sessions drew packed audiences across the three days.

Asia Food Innovation Awards by FoodBev Media – The second Asian edition of the globally-recognised Food Innovation Awards also took place at SFFA. Designed to celebrate excellence across every category of the global food industry, the Awards offer brands an exciting way to showcase their achievements in product and design.

Chef Demos and Hot Topic Panel Discussions at Fine Food Live – Fine Food Live was a bevy of activities for chef demos and panel discussions centered on themes of heritage and sustainability. The first day saw Singapore’s traditional food and hawker heritage take center stage with a panel session featuring prominent artisanal producers and local food champions discussing the everyday challenges and highlighting their hopes for hawker culture in Singapore.

For the first time, SFFA also collaborated with World Gourmet Summit (WGS) – the region’s premier haute cuisine festival – to curate two days of interactive programming on the second and third days. Reputable chefs presented the sessions from popular local establishments.


31st National Cocktail Competition – RPB Asia also hosted one of the region’s most prestigious bartending competitions – the 31st National Cocktail Competition (NCC) by the Association of Bartenders & Sommeliers Singapore (ABSS) for the first time in the show’s history – underscoring RPB Asia’s position as Southeast Asia’s only trade show dedicated to the restaurant, pub and bar community. Visitors were treated to scintillating action and the highest level of craftsmanship at the competition.

Insights and a new SG Signature Cocktail at Centre Stage – On the final day, the top four bartenders in the NCC Classic Category were paired with four renowned bartenders in Singapore for the SG Signature Cocktail Competition and tasked to create a brand-new iconic drink for Singapore, in celebration of the nation’s bicentennial. Each pair had to develop a cocktail inspired by, has elements of, or can be paired with one of the nation’s signature dishes – Chicken Rice.

Show Partner, The Bar Awards, also curated an exciting lineup of masterclasses and talks across topics ranging from specialty spirits to sake, beer and wine at Centre Stage.

Retail Industry Report by KPMG – To provide a tangible resource to reference after the show, SFFA and RPB Asia have collaborated with KPMG for the first time to develop a Retail Industry Report, available to all registered visitors. The Retail Industry Report is packed full of information and insights into consumer purchase trends, the future of F&B retail and how trade attendees can best transform and future-proof their business.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM EXHIBITORS AND VISITORS

This year’s enhanced programming and offerings impressed both exhibitors and visitors alike.

YT Law, CEO of NLYTech Biotech Sdn Bhd who exhibited at the shows this year, said, “This is the best show so far that we’ve joined in Singapore. We found the response very positive and are looking forward to coming back next year!” Millette Manalo-Burgos, Editorial Strategist at Tasty Asia, added, “I think this year’s shows are better and bigger with a mix of exhibitors in terms of food tech, ingredients and fine food, and I saw a good representation of countries from Europe, Middle East and Southeast Asia.”

Christian Cadeo, Managing Partner, Asia of Big Idea Ventures expressed similar sentiments about the shows, citing it as “Probably one of the best shows in Asia, in terms of meeting people within the food industry as well as the new food tech industry.”

Speciality & Fine Food Asia and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia will be back even bigger next year from 29 September – 1 October 2020, while the UK edition will take place from 1 – 3 September 2019 at Olympia, London later this year.

For future updates, visit the official show websites – Speciality-Asia.com and RPB-Asia.com.