New BIOFACH trade fair in Thailand

• First BIOFACH SOUTH EAST ASIA to be held in July 2018
• Takes place at the same time as the NATURAL EXPO SOUTH EAST ASIA

BIOFACH goes to Thailand: BIOFACH SOUTH EAST ASIA will become the seventh member of the BIOFACH family when it opens its doors for the first time at the IMPACT Exhibition Center in Nonthaburi, Bangkok, from 12 to 15 July 2018. It will take place at the same time as the NATURAL EXPO SOUTH EAST ASIA, which showcases nearnatural products that are in the process of being certified as organic. Both trade fairs are being organized and run by NürnbergMesse in cooperation with the DIT (Department of Internal Trade), a department of Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce, and are replacing the longestablished Organic & Natural Expo, which has been held by the DIT in Bangkok for the last six years. NürnbergMesse is expecting the inaugural event to have roughly 250 exhibiting companies and occupy approximately 2,000 m2. 45,000 trade visitors and end consumers are anticipated.

Describing how the partnership between NürnbergMesse and the DIT came about, Markus Reetz, NürnbergMesse’s Executive Director of International Exhibitions says: “NürnbergMesse is now establishing a trade fair for organically produced foods in the ASEAN region and developing the region’s market for organic foods and natural goods by doing so. We are looking forward to working with the Thai Ministry of Commerce, which, through its Organic & Natural Expo, has already created a strong foundation in Bangkok that we will now be building on. As well as the strong BIOFACH brand, the partnership will benefit from NürnbergMesse’s expertise and network.”

And the food and agricultural industry is in fact one of South East Asia’s most important economic sectors. Organic farmland in the ASEAN states is increasing with yearly growth rates of between 10 and 100 %. The Philippines are leading the way here, having seen an increase of 113 % in 2015 compared to 2014. Thailand is well ahead of the other ASEAN states as far as its organic industry is concerned, however. The majority of the region’s certified organic producers are concentrated in Thailand at the moment, and Thai certifier ACT (Organic Agriculture Certification Thailand), which is a member of the “IFOAM Family of Standards”, operates in many ASEAN countries. This market will play a major role in the future both nationally and internationally, and there are various political initiatives that are helping it continue to grow as well. Explaining the decision to hold the new trade fairs in Thailand, Reetz says: “Thailand is making a special effort in this area. This commitment and the long-established Organic & Natural Expo make Bangkok the perfect location for BIOFACH SOUTH EAST ASIA and NATURAL EXPO SOUTH EAST ASIA”.

Organic & Natural Expo split into two exhibitions
In the run-up to what would have been the next Organic & Natural Expo, a decision to divide the existing trade fair into two exhibitions has been made. BIOFACH SOUTH EAST ASIA will therefore be open to visitors at the same time and at the same place as NATURAL EXPO SOUTH EAST ASIA when it takes place in the summer of 2018. “The two events will each have their own approval criteria, so that the BIOFACH unique selling point, namely the fact that only certified organic products are displayed, is strictly adhered to at BIOFACH SOUTH EAST ASIA,” stresses Reetz.

The NATURAL EXPO SOUTH EAST ASIA, on the other hand, will present near-natural products that are in the process of being certified as organic. It has the medium-term goal of motivating exhibitors to switch their nearnatural products to a certified organic standard.

Basic concept of the trade fair duo
As at all BIOFACH trade fairs, there will be a focus on networking between national and international industry players. All the BIOFACH exhibitions outside of Germany are designed to be regional trade fairs that reflect their respective local markets. “This new event is important for growth of the organic market throughout South East Asia and is intended to accelerate this even more in terms of supply and demand in the future,” explained Reetz.

With regard to the event’s concept, the product show is to be supplemented by a conference, the BIOFACH SOUTH EAST ASIA Conference, which will be held at the same time. The conference will serve as an opportunity for broad-impact coverage of region-relevant organic topics and is expected to be developed into an information and communication platform for the whole of the South East Asian organic sector in the future.

The next few BIOFACH events:

• BIOFACH, Nuremberg: 14 – 17 February 2018
• BIOFACH AMERICA, Baltimore: 14 – 16 September 2017
• BIOFACH INDIA, Delhi: 09 –11 November 2017
• BIOFACH CHINA, Shanghai: 24 – 26 May 2018
• BIOFACH AMERICA LATINA, São Paulo: 06 – 09 June 2018
• BIOFACH JAPAN, Tokyo: 2018

BIOFACH World
NürnbergMesse has proven expertise in the field of organic food produce. The international sector comes together in February of each year in Nuremberg at BIOFACH, the World’s Leading Trade Fair for Organic Food. The comprehensive range of certified organic products is demonstrated by the variety – from fresh products such as dairy produce and cheese, through fruit, vegetables, dried goods such as cereals and pulses, nuts and confectionery, to beverages. The international patron of BIOFACH is IFOAM – Organics International, the national supporting organisation of the Bund Ökologische Lebensmittelwirtschaft (BÖLW; in English: Organic Food Production Alliance). An integral element of the world’s leading trade fair is the BIOFACH Congress, a knowledge platform unparalleled around the world. With six other BIOFACH exhibitions in Japan, the United States, South America, China, India and Thailand BIOFACH World is present around the globe and brings together a total of more than 3,000 exhibitors and 100,000 trade visitors year-on-year.

Participation contact
Mariya Korkmaz
NürnbergMesse GmbH
Messezentrum, 90471 Nuremberg, Germany
T +49 9 11. 86 06-86 15
info@biofach-world.com

Contacts for the press and media
Helen Kreisel, Barbara Böck and Marie-Claire Ritzer
T +49 9 11. 86 06-86 46
F +49 9 11. 86 06-12 86 46
marie-claire.ritzer@nuernbergmesse.de