Vinh Hoan Corporation and Vietnam Food Company (VNF) were two of over 1,000 local and international food entrepreneurs from more than 45 countries to attend Food Ingredients Asia 2023 and Vitafoods Asia 2023 last week.

Organised by Informa Markets in Bangkok on September 20-22, the two businesses from Vietnam were busy taking care of people visiting their booths.

“We focus on exporting to the EU and Asia, and participating in exhibitions is an effective solution to find partners and distributors, said Thu Tran, chief sales officer of Vinh Hoan Corporation. “We have regularly participated in exhibitions, especially international ones. This year alone, we have attended exhibitions in South Korea, Thailand, and Germany as well as Vietnam.”

Seafood processor and exporter Vinh Hoan has a subsidiary named Vinh Wellness, which was the first in Vietnam to apply high technology to produce collagen peptides and gelatin from basa fish skin.

“Participating in international exhibitions and fairs is expensive but it is the most effective method to promote exports. We have an addition of 20-30 more customers and distributors after each exhibition. The larger the exhibition, the higher the chance of finding partners and customers,” Thu said.

Furthermore, its products have international certification, so exhibitions can help reach as many partners and distributors as possible, Thu added.

VNF, meanwhile, which specialises in processing shrimp co-products, has also been adding to its customer and distributor base.

“Over the past two years, when the company gained a certain foothold in the international market, we often participated in three international exhibitions, excluding domestic exhibitions,” said Ngoc Tran, deputy sales manager of VNF. “One of our most important targets is to find international distributors because currently most of the company’s products are exported.”

However, the company’s sales team is not strong enough to sell products worldwide and to exploit the potential of the market.

“That is why we need support from big international distributors,” Tran explained.

Manu Leopairote, chairman of Informa Markets, said, “I believe that the exhibition platforms will support and enable Thailand’s and Asian food, drinks, and nutraceutical manufacturing industries to achieve higher quality and standard of products with a sustainable approach.”

According to the organising board, by participating in these events, companies will have the opportunity to discover trends and innovations in health and nutrition, meet suppliers to source white-label products and engage with a wide range of specialist solution providers.

Rungphech Chitanuwat, ASEAN regional director for Informa Markets in Thailand, said the events unlock opportunities for entrepreneurs to share and update global food trends, aiming at amplifying potential and ensuring local raw material and beverage operators are well-armed for the global arena.

“This year’s events have been revamped to give a more modern sense, solidifying our position as tastemakers, being a hub that gathers raw materials from every corner of the world,” Chitanuwat said.

“Within the events, over 1,000 operators and product owners and over 30,000 local and international buyers can be interacted with. In addition, more than 30,000 visitors were expected for both events, which will generate added value and shape solid business networks in the future.”