Food & Beverage News: F&B Specials - Food & Hotel Oman 2009, a gateway to Middle East

With Oman's rapidly growing annual food requirements and the construction of world-class hotels in several parts of the sultanate, a major trade exhibition - Food & Hotel Oman 2009, will be held on October 26-28 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre in the capital, Muscat.

Organised by Omanexpo LLC, one of the leading event organisers in Oman, Food & Hotel Oman 2009 will showcase a wide range of food and beverage, hotel equipment and supplies, kitchen and catering equipment as well as food processing technologies and food packaging products. The three-day international exhibition will also feature all products and equipment related to agriculture and fisheries, hotel decor & style and hospitality technologies.

Food & Hotel Oman 2009 will play a major role in bringing together local and international buyers and sellers under one roof, as the event is purposely designed to cover a wide range of industries, products, and interests.

"With the participation of major companies directly serving the country's food and hotel sector, Food & Hotel Oman 2009 will feature the largest gathering of industry professionals and the biggest ever display of products for hotels and restaurants, hypermarkets, groceries and food manufacturing firms," said Nasser Diab, general manager of Omanexpo LLC. Omanexpo LLC is a member of International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE) and UFI-The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry.

Diab pointed out that the event comes at a time when the sultanate's food and hospitality industries are experiencing rapid growth as more prestigious properties, which include many five-star hotels, are built all over Oman. "The various development projects now ongoing in various parts of the country are paving the way for the establishment in Oman of many globally-known hotel brands. Among these are Kempinski, Fairmont, Four Seasons, Marriott, InterContinental, Anantara, Banyan Tree, Movenpick, Rotana, Six Senses Resorts and Spas, Hotel Missoni, Swiss-Belhotel, and many others," Diab added.

First held in 2005, the exhibition was originally called Food Expo and primarily focused on food and beverage, kitchen and catering equipment, food processing technologies, food packaging systems as well as agriculture and fisheries. Starting this year, the biennial event has been re-branded as Food & Hotel Oman in the light of the exciting developments in the hospitality industry in the sultanate.

According to the organisers, the previous edition of the event attracted 85 exhibitors and over 8,500 visitors from 11 countries. "The show has been well received by the food and hotel industry in Oman. It has consistently attracted the participation of major companies that deal in kitchen and catering equipment and has also served as a platform for foreign companies to introduce their products to the highly lucrative Omani market.

This year, we expect the number of exhibitors and visitors to increase by at least 20% compared to the previous edition," Abdullah Beg, project manager of Omanexpo, told Food & Beverage News in an e-mail interview.

Till date, countries like India, China, Germany, Italy, Jordan, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, UAE and the US have registered for the event.

Chef competition:
In addition to the international exhibition, Food & Hotel Oman 2009 will also feature a competition for chefs in partnership with the Oman Chefs Guild (OCG) and Salman Hotel and Restaurant Equipment LLC.

The competition will be held on all days of the event where participants will vie for top honours in three categories - The Best Wedding Cake, Five-Course Meal, and Fruit and Vegetable Carvings. The competition is open to everyone representing the food production industry and will be mainly participated by chefs from different hotel properties, restaurants, and bakeries of the sultanate.

The event is officially endorsed by the Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry (OCCI), and also supported by AKAH Najwani & Partners LLC as the major sponsor, Salman Hotel and Restaurant Equipment LLC as the platinum sponsor, and ELCO National Trading Co. LLC as the silver sponsor.

"The economic downturn could have had an impact on the decision of some foreign companies to participate as they reduce their promotional budgets but overall - with Oman not severely affected by the financial crisis, we have not really felt any impact of the economic downturn to our show. In addition, the government has already implemented various measures to control the spread of the epidemic like swine flu," Beg informed.

From India, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) with six Indian companies will feature Indian pavilion and will exhibit bakery equipment, cutlery and tableware for hotels and restaurants, laboratory instruments for food testing as well as various types of whole and blended spice powders.

Further, the organisers are also sure that these range of Indian products and services will attract the attention of visitors, considering the good reputation of Indian products in Oman as well as the huge Indian population residing in the sultanate.