FRUIT LOGISTICA 2020 offers produce business a huge confidence boost

The fruit and vegetable business demonstrated both its enduring resilience and enormous potential for growth at FRUIT LOGISTICA 2020, the leading international fresh produce trade fair, which took place in Berlin on 5-7 February. Despite the unique challenge presented by this year’s coronavirus outbreak in China, the event once again set the gold standard as a platform for networking and marketing, bringing together a record number of over 3,300 exhibitors as well as more than 72,000 trade visitors from all over the world.  As one might expect for an event with such an extensive global reach, there was intense media attention on FRUIT LOGISTICA 2020 as it got underway. Travel restrictions on visitors and exhibitors from China, combined with understandable concerns among others planning to attend, certainly slowed down the exhibition’s recent growth. But according to Madlen Miserius, Senior Product Manager at FRUIT LOGISTICA, clear communication in the days prior to the show and additional security measures on site did a lot to boost confidence. Countless business deals have been made“We fully understand the reasons why some people missed this year’s brilliant FRUIT LOGISTICA, but fortunately we were still able to bring together the largest and most international congregation of fresh produce professionals anywhere in the world,” Miserius commented. “The quality of trade visitors was very high, and we know from our exhibitor feedback that a very good amount of new business was done here in the FRUIT LOGISTICA halls. We really look forward to welcoming back those friends who couldn’t be with us this time to our next show.” With around 85% of exhibitors coming from outside Germany to take part, this year’s exhibition helped more companies than ever before to establish new contacts and develop new supply partnerships. Over 95% of trade visitors surveyed rated their overall business success at FRUIT LOGISTICA 2020 as positive, a ringing endorsement of the event’s continued importance. The next trade show datesASIA FRUIT LOGISTICA will take place between 16-18 September 2020 this year for the first time in Singapore, a leading business and trading hub in Asia. Save the date for the next round: FRUIT LOGISTICA 2021 will take place 3-5 February in Berlin. Statements from exhibitors on FRUIT LOGISTICA 2020Bianca Bonifacio, Internationalization & Exhibitions Manager, C.S.O. Italy:"The trade show went surprisingly well. Despite the crisis in China, we noticed no difference from past years, and the Messe Berlin did everything to make us feel secure. We had a lot of visitors and are very satisfied. We take part in a lot of trade fairs, but FRUIT LOGISTICA is the biggest and most important to us." Ger van Burik, Exhibition Coordinator, Holland Fresh Group:"This year went very well for us despite the uncertainty leading up to the event due to the situation in China. That was not noticeable at the exhibition. For me, FRUIT LOGISTICA is the best trade show in Europe because it is so international and the quality of visitors is very high." Filip Fontaine, General Manager, VLAM:"We are here with 30 Belgian companies, and our exhibitors say that the quality of the visitors is especially high. Germany and France make up our most important market, and FRUIT LOGISTICA stands out for the international makeup of its visitors. The new hall 27 is very comfortable and the space is nice. Our customers enjoy coming here, and that made this year one of the best."  Georg Kössler, Chairman, VOG:"FRUIT LOGISTICA went very well for us, as usual. We had a lot of contact with customers who want to see us here every year, and the conversations with them were very positive. We met with some new customers here and there as well. Overall, the trade show is quite important to us and we are satisfied all around." Maurice van der Knaap, Development, Productions and Sales, Dry Hydroponics:"We are from the Netherlands and have our own GreenTech convention. But FRUIT LOGISTICA is even better for us, because it is more international with visitors from around the world. We are also able to maintain contact with our customers and get to know future customers. The trade show is a very successful moment in the year for us that allows us to connect with our business partners."  Fabian Mendel, CEO, Parus Germany:"This was our first time at FRUIT LOGISTICA, a very interesting exhibition. Contrary to other exhibitions for horticulture, the quality of the stand visitors is especially high. Here you can speak with potential customers about specific projects. That's exciting for us."  Jorge García Monfort, Management Department, Garcia Ballester:"Because customers from around the world are here, FRUIT LOGISTICA is the right place for international business. We meet people from all over the globe and would have to spend three months travelling the world if we were to meet with as many business partners as we found here in just two days." Thomas Schlich, Managing Director, Landgard:"We had many constructive conversations at the trade show and were well received. As a meeting point for the industry, the trade show is the right place for us to present our Landgard Awards and distinguish creators for special achievements." Dr. Kristian Moeller, Chief Executive Officer, GlobalG.A.P:"We welcome FRUIT LOGISTICA focusing on sustainability this year, because we support sustainable production and even our stand is recyclable. We are very pleased with our location in the new hall 27. We can't be missed, and we have a lot of interested visitors." Fulvio Berton, VP of Global Marketing, Top Seeds International:"This year was very productive for us, even though some of our customers called off in the last minute. For a company like ours, going to FRUIT LOGISTICA is a must. It's a meeting place that we cannot miss. In just a few days you can meet a lot of people whom we would otherwise only be able to meet through weeks of travelling." Veljko Jovanovic, Advisor to the President, Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Serbia:"FRUIT LOGISTICA is the largest fruit trade show in Europe, and is very important for our exhibitors. After last year we are present again, this time with a stand twice as large, where we can show more products and with them the range of what we have on offer." Janan Jenny La Fontaine, Marketing Assistant, PickPack:"I think it's a wonderful trade show where many people from different countries can get together. We had a lot of people who were interested in our products, and I'm very optimistic because we found many new buyers for our packaging."  Theresa Zhang, Global Trading Sales, Idealists:"FRUIT LOGISTICA is the right place for us to present new, compostable packaging material. This is where we meet an international audience so that we can advertise it." Monserrat Valenzuela, Managing Director, Comité de Cítricos de Chile:"The trade show is very important for us. Here we show a wide range of fruits. The USA is currently our most important export country, but we are here because we also want to expand our trade with Europe. As a country in the southern hemisphere, we see this as a great opportunity to deliver citrus fruits to more countries during the European winter." André Lüling, Managing Director, Port International European Sourcing:"FRUIT LOGISTICA was very positive for us. The topic of climate neutrality was quite well received and spread by word of mouth. FRUIT LOGISTICA's new hall is divided very well and we are happy to be here, because the variety of exhibitors is very good. This has brought a lot of visitors to the hall and the quality is quite high." Cathy Hendricks, Food Safety, Battleboro Produce:"It was the largest fruit industry trade show that I have ever been to. I appreciate the detailed information that every company provides about its product, and met a lot of people from various areas of export while having highly interesting conversations." Alejandra Calderon, Foreign Affairs Manager, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Ecuador:"As a partner country for FRUIT LOGISTICA, we had an unbelievably successful year. The results for us have been unbelievable. Communication with the trade show was outstanding, and the level of interest quite high. It was also very successful for our producers, many of whom were in Europe for the first time and were able to make great connections." Mario Mercadini, Large-scale Distribution Manager, Sorma:"We found many new customers at FRUIT LOGISTICA. The convention is the right moment for us to present new products. This year we were able to score with largely compostable packaging that was met with a lot of interest."