Rimini Fiera

Rimini Fiera is the new home of Macfrut

Macfrut’s so-called Edition 3.2, an attempt to restore Italy’s foremost annual fresh produce trade fair to its former glory by switching to a new location in Rimini and making new commitments to innovation and international networking, certainly promises plenty for those looking to explore new business opportunities in Italy itself and the wider regions of the Mediterranean and North Africa.

More than a thousand exhibitors are expected to take part in this year’s trade fair, which will occupy a 33,000m2 space across six halls at Rimini Fiera on 23-25 September. The show will be divided into 11 different exhibition sectors – seeds, breeding and nurseries, crop technology, production, trading and retail, processing machinery, packaging, fresh-cut, dried fruit, logistics and services.

What’s more, organisers Cesena Fiera have chosen Rimini with its better international connections in mind. The new location boasts an underground railway station on the line connecting Milan to Bari, and will also coincide with Flora Trade, the international floriculture trade show, which will be held at the Rimini venue the same time.

Macfrut 2015 will place a notable emphasis on innovation. Just recently, for example, with show partner Centro Servizi Ortofrutticoli (CSO) it presented a new tool called Macfrut Consumers’ Trend, which will release information and data regarding fruit and vegetable consumption on a monthly basis, paying special attention to cutting-edge trends that track consumer behaviour patterns when presented with new products or segments characterised by a high level of innovation.

“The Macfrut Consumers’ Trend is not just an analysis or study observatory but rather a more extensive project to relaunch the fruit and vegetable supply chain in Italy,” explains Renzo Piraccini, president of Cesena Fiera. “The first report highlights a key figure: growth cannot be achieved without innovation. Those who have invested in this area and implemented systems can show that they have managed to face the challenges posed by the global market on a daily basis better.”

Another major theme of the Italian fruit and vegetable trade fair is internationalisation. This time around, it has secured a strategic partnership with Unicredit, the leading banking group in central and eastern Europe, a collaboration that will take Macfrut all the way to Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Turkey.

This internationalisation process will also focus on Maghreb countries (Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia), with which important relations have been established thanks to collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as with South American countries, primarily Brazil and the Dominican Republic.

As proof of the great interest that the project is raising in the Italian and international fruit and vegetable industry, Macfrut’s relaunch has already attracted high-profile international participants. These include Sun World, California’s world-leading giant in the breeding of new trademarked varieties of seedless grapes such as Sugrathirteen Midnight Beauty and Sugranineteen Scarlotta Seedless, as well as plums including the Black Diamond and Black Giant series. Zespri, New Zealand’s world-leading kiwifruit marketer, will also be in attendance.

One day before Macfrut opens, a special conference event called Macfrut Forum will be held in Cesena. The forum will comprise three sessions moderated by Agroter, cso and Eurofruit, and will concentrate on key areas of strategic importance including future retail trends for fresh produce, the development of point-of-sale promotions and technological innovation.

Reversing the decline

Interest in the new Macfrut appears to have rebounded as a result of the decision to relocate. That decision was taken following years of declining support for the event at its old venue in Cesena, a location that many agreed was no longer suited to the its requirements as an international meeting point for the fresh fruit and vegetable sector. Piraccini revealed back in May that the switch had helped reverse that decline. “Whereas in Cesena last year at this point the amount of stand space booked was little more than 60 per cent of the total, four months from the event we’re already at 100 per cent of the total achieved in previous years,” he commented. By offering exhibitors accommodation as part of their stand package as an added incentive, the organisers have managed to bring some new vigour to its sales process and, in the process, generate an estimated 6,000 hotel bookings.

Italy’s largest retailer Coop Italia, meanwhile, has cast a notable vote of confidence in the rejuvenated Macfrut by selecting it as a platform to connect with the rest of the supply chain. As well as exhibiting, the group is planning to hold a conference with suppliers from Italy and the rest of Europe during the course of the event. The retailer’s conference is expected to involve more than 200 suppliers, giving them an opportunity to assess emerging new commercial strategies in the fresh produce business.

According to Claudio Mazzini, who heads up Coop’s fresh produce department, recent attempts on the part of Macfrut organiser Cesena Fiera to make improvements have provided the company with the reassurance necessary to incorporate the annual convention into its plans. “We chose Macfrut because we were convinced by its relaunch plans, both in terms of the new location, Rimini, which is more modern and more suited to an international trade fair, and its commitment to innovation,” he says. “Our main focus, as Coop Italia, remains listening to the needs of consumers: in Macfrut we have found the right response.”

Piraccini feels happy that Coop’s decision to join other leading industry players at the Rimini meeting reflects a renewed confidence in what it has to offer: “Coop Italia has taken note of Macfrut edition 3.2’s new features as a business trade fair that pays attention to innovation in the sector and has an international feel. For us, the fact that they’re showing up in Rimini not just as an exhibitor but also with an important appointment for their suppliers is proof that we are going in the right direction.”