The two-day International Conference of the Modernisation of Chinese Medicine and Health Products (ICMCM), which is jointly organised with the Modernised Chinese Medicine International Association Ltd (MCMIA), will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on August 15 and 16, 2019 to provide the latest market developments and insights to industry professionals.
The theme of the conference is TCM Modernisation and Internationalisation: Start from the Greater Bay Area this year. Speakers from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Japan and Korea will share the latest developments in herbal medicines and its business opportunities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
On 17 August, public ticket-holders can join the Public Forum sessions with professional Chinese medicine practitioners to discuss on the practices to maintain good health.
It will be held concurrently with the Food Expo, Beauty and Wellness Expo, Home Delights Expo and Hong Kong International Tea Fair, which will take place between August 15 and 19, 2019, and be organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC).
Benjamin Chau, deputy executive director, HKTDC, said “Gathering international offerings of food and beverage, tea, beauty and home-related products, HKTDC organises a number of public and trade fairs for consumers and trade buyers in August every year.
Food Expo
Entering its 30th edition, the Food Expo will comprise three sections including Trade Hall, Gourmet Zone and Public Hall to feature over 1,560 exhibitors from about 20 countries and regions.
Last year, the Food Expo drew 5,10,000 visitors, while its Trade Hall attracted over 21,000 trade buyers.
Trade Hall (which is slated to take place between August 15 and 17) will be dedicated to trade buyers on the first two days to explore business opportunities with exhibitors, and open to public visitors with ticket admission on the last day.
Apart from the themed product zones of Halal Food and Chinese Medicine, the Trade Hall will gather international pavilions representing Mainland China, India, Iran, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.
Some of the featured products include probiotics from Korea, which can help improve intestinal health; gluten-free, produced-in-France cider combined with the sweet taste of infused honey, the spicy flavour of cinnamon and the fresh notes of mandarin orange; a series of low-calorie salad dressings from Thailand with various flavours such as seafood, wasabi, roasted sesame and mixed fruits.
During the fair period, industry professionals will discuss on the new online promotion strategies in Mainland China, the food certification and testing schemes, exhibitors’ forums and more.
Gourmet Zone, which will take place between August 15 and 18, will feature over 70 exhibitors under five themes, including Western Delicacy, Asian Cuisine, Sweet Delight, Green Palate as well as the newly-launched Coffee Avenue.
Open to public ticket-holders, the zone will showcase a wide range of high-end worldwide delicacies such as the coffee beer presented by a Hong Kong brand, merging coffee into dark beer to add sweetness and baking scent; the abalone craft beer produced by wild-caught abalone from the fresh oceans of Australia; and Watermelon Strawberry Cake that comprised of juicy watermelon layer, fresh strawberries, rose-scented cream and almond base.
Public Hall, which will take place between August 15 and 19, will gather about 600 exhibitors and feature five group pavilions from Mainland China, Canada, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. The highlighted Premium Food Zone will feature more than 30 renowned brands, including Apollo, Chewy International, Kee Wah Bakery, Maxim’s Group, Nissin Foods, On Kee Dry Seafood, Tai Pan, Vita Green, Wing Wah and newcomers Hang Heung Cake Shop, European Gourmet and Cheong-Kwan-Jang.
A series of activities will be organised throughout the fair period. Over 15 celebrity chefs and famous bloggers will present cooking demonstrations. These include the popular television cooking show hosts Steve Lee and Helen Tam; Catherine Lai, founder and executive chef, Kam Mun Jong; Saito Chau, executive chef, John Anthony; and Ho Chun Hung, chef de cuisine, Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Sha Tin. Some chefs will also demonstrate less salt, less sugar recipes in cooking demonstrations.
There will be seminars to discuss diet and health issues including healthy cooking with less salt and sugar, the food map 2019–2020 Wan Chai a La Carte launch, seminar on table manner and sharing by star chefs on cooking tips.
Beauty and Wellness Expo: Showcasing Korean beauty trends
In response to the rising awareness of healthy-living lifestyle, the Beauty and Wellness Expo (slated to take place between August 15 and 19) will gather over 100 exhibitors from Hong Kong, Korea, Macao, Taiwan and the UK to showcase skincare and haircare products, spa massage products and health products, such as the skincare series founded by Yvonne Ryding from Sweden, who won the Miss Universe in 1984; the hair tourmaline straightener for all hair types and the eye and lip relaxing anti-wrinkle cream.
To echo with the high popularity of Korean cosmetics in the beauty industry, the expo will again adopt the theme Stylish K-Beauty this year. HKTDC will cooperate with the Korea International Exhibition Center (KINTEX) to launch the K-Beauty Expo Hong Kong pavilion, featuring a wide variety of products from over 35 Korean brands. Meanwhile, visitors will also find some beauty brand names such as Ingrid Millet and New Angance from France, Medimix from India, Golden Curl from the UK and Yvonne Ryding in the expo.
Hong Kong Hair and Beauty Merchants Association and the Federation of Beauty Industry (Hong Kong) will feature 28 exhibitors to present skincare, slimming and haircare products this year. A newcomer is the pavilion formed by Jessica Magazine of South China Media. Besides, there will be a pavilion from Taiwan to showcase quality wellness products.
Events being held during the expo period include product demonstrations and sharing sessions by beauty experts on make-up tips for summer parties and the uterus warming tips.
Furthermore, Yoko Tsang, dietary therapist and beauty expert, will share speedy reduction of eye-level oedema, while beauty key opinion leader Flower Leong and Ryding will share knowledge on dress-up and skincare respectively.
Home Delights Expo: Creating stylish homes
The sixth edition of the Home Delights Expo, which will take place between August 15 and 19, will gather over 180 exhibitors to showcase a wide range of quality electrical appliances and household products, such as the world’s first patented porcelain-energy instantaneous electric water heater, the aqua cleaning mop with dual water tank design and the one-stop interior design platform. Visitors can also find out other trendy household products ranging from kitchen appliances, bedroom items, cookware, kitchen utensils and bar accessories to massage chairs in the expo.
The expo’s highlight is the Avenue of Delights, featuring numerous leading lifestyle brands from more than 40 exhibitors including AIRLAND, CLP, dyson, DPM, Decor House, HUROM, Jamie Oliver, Kenwood, Ladyship, Goodway, OGAWA, OTO, rapee-LIVING, Rocago, Tiger, Philips etc.
This year, the HKTDC and the Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong will join hands to stage the Start-up Square Entrepreneur Experience Taster at the expo, providing an ideal platform for youth entrepreneurs to present their quality products and services.
Visitors can bid for their favourite household appliances and products at the popular Smart Bidding event. A series of cooking demonstrations will be arranged for health dishes teaching. Events on home decor, home tidy-up and storage will also be held.
Tea Fair: Brewing opportunities in tea business
The 11th edition of the Hong Kong International Tea Fair, which will take place between August 15 and 17, will open exclusively to trade buyers on the first two days, and welcome public ticket-holders on 17 August. Gathering over 250 international exhibitors, the fair will feature group pavilions from India, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, as well as Fujian, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Sichuan from Mainland China. The fair attracted over 16,000 trade buyers last year, making it a premiere tea trading platform in Asia.
Exhibitors will present a wide variety of products including tea, processed tea and tea product, tea packaging, tea processing equipment and testing services, tea ware, tea craft and technology. Visitors can also enjoy tea-food pairing experience at the Friends of Tea zone, where sweets, snacks and biscuits will be showcased.
Some of the featured products include the Fuyuanchang Blue Paper Pu’er tea cake from a century-old well-established brand in Yunnan, Mainland China; Lancang Ancient Tea, which is among the top 10 Pu’er tea brands in Mainland China, featuring mixed leaves from several ancient tea trees on the famous tea mountains; Fujian Jian Zhan, a royal tea ware from the Song Dynasty, which can enhance the tea fragrance and taste.
A series of events will be held during the fair including the Hong Kong International Tea Competition, where professional judges will review different tea categories through blind-tasting.
Other events include tea arts performances, tea tasting sessions, international cup warming and more. Industry players can exchange information from a seminar on tea science and branding strategies, as well as a Buyer Forum discussing the business opportunities.
On the public day (17 August), there will be the final of the International KamCha Competition 2019 (Hong Kong-style Milk Tea). Public ticket-holders can also try the winning teas of the tea competition and join a series of Tea Forums delivered by industry experts on topics like introduction to kombucha, Japanese Sado and dessert pairing, as well as youth tea ceremony.