Beer Attraction & BBTech Expo 2019: Review

Beers and beverages as an aggregator of the food and beverage supply chain. This is the feature that distinguished Beer Attraction and BBTech Expo 2019, which took place from 16-19 February at the Rimini Expo Centre.

The event opened with the presentation of the new brand 2020 Beer&Food Attraction – The dining out experience show and, enhanced internationally and in terms of product range by BBTech Expo, it attracted a total of over 32 000 visitors (+40 % on 2018), and 600 exhibitors from 10 foreign countries: Germany, Belgium, Spain, Austria, Poland, France, Great Britain, Czech Republic, United States and Canada, interested in increasing know-how and business opportunities on the Italian market. Then there were contestants and judges of the competitions, competing teams, conference guests and event participants. 247 journalists and bloggers – both Italian and foreign – were accredited, with extraordinary exposure on major media and social networks.

At the same time as Beer Attraction – of which Food Attraction was part – and BBTech Expo, the International Horeca Meeting, the event of Italgrob, the Italian Federation of Horeca Distributors, was also held.

This double appointment of the Italian Exhibition Group is the only B2B event where, on the one hand, best beers and top beverages (water, soft drinks, spirits) encounter quality foods and, on the other hand, the most comprehensive offer of technologies and equipment for production and packaging of beverages.

BBTech Expo presented processing and filling technologies, raw materials, packaging, equipment and services for beers and beverages. The event is an innovative trade fair format in which manufacturers of machinery and equipment can find business opportunities both with exhibiting companies and trade visitors. The events of the BBTech Lab, the area dedicated to workshops, in-depth studies, training and refresher meetings in collaboration with Cerb, the Research Centre for Beer Excellence of the University of Perugia and the University of Udine, also were expanded.

Beer Attraction, now in its 5th edition, has become in just a few years the business appointment of reference for the sector. Strategic partners of the event are Unionbirrai, Italgrob, FIC – Federazione Italiana Cuochi and CAST Alimenti. International growth, with the participation of numerous foreign buyers, was made possible with the collaboration of ICE – Italian Trade Agency.

For the first time, the Brewers Association (BA), representing 5000 producers of artisanal beers, presented the new American trends in premises and consumption.

This year, the winner of the Brewery of the Year Award – part of the Unionbirrai Beer of the Year competition – went to the Mukkeller brewery based in Marche region. The producer from Porto Sant’Elpidio took the gold medal, with three products, awarded by an international jury of 100 experts from Italy, Europe and the USA. The judges voted on 1994 beers from 327 producers, divided into 41 categories. Crowds of great operators also attended the Beer Academy Award, organized by the magazine Il Mondo della Birra.

The entire dining out world came together at the Rimini Exhibition Centre, thanks also to the 8th edition of the International Horeca Meeting, the Italgrob event dedicated to dining out, with over 1000 participants. The 2019 Italian Cuisine Championships, the most important and complete Italian competition for all categories of cuisine, organised by the Italian Chefs Federation with the support of Worldchef and in collaboration with the Italian Exhibition Group as part of the Food Attraction event, were also staged. 1500 chefs from Italy and abroad took turns in the kitchen during four days of competitions.