Though a small show, Edith Derksen, who works with the event's organiser, CMP, as project manager for emerging markets, says that the show has more space and more exhibitors.
"It is difficult to tell at this stage about visitor numbers, but my impression is that numbers are up on the previous event, which was held in Warsaw two years ago," Derksen explained. "This year the focus of the show has changed and we anticipate that this will make its appeal far more diverse. We started FI-CEE shows back in 1999. The first show was in Budapest, then Moscow and the last event was in Warsaw back in 2002.
" These events attracted mainly local visitors, which was great for those specific markets but did not address the needs of other markets. Because this year's show is in Berlin, we are looking to attract people from both eastern and western Europe, making the show's appeal more diverse. What we have discovered from previous experience is that there are also a number of suppliers from eastern Europe who are looking to target the western market. Obviously with accession this has bought about even more opportunities for the new Member States."
Attendees are not only limited to Europe, though. Many exhibitors are from Asia, with China, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand all represented. One exhibitor from the Malaysian Palm Oil Association said that the central and eastern European market now represented the biggest opportunities for Palm oil producers trying to break into new European markets.
Benedict Maheut from France-based colourings supplier, CNI, said that although the show was not full of people she had been pleased about the type of people she had met. "So far I have spoken to a number of potential customers who are interested in our products," she said. "We are keen to break into this eastern European market as it is very important for future business prospects."
Maheut added that doing business in the region can often prove to be a problem, particularly in Russia - a fact that was perhaps demonstrated by the lack of Russian companies or visitors at the show. She said that CNI has a representative agent in that market, something that has proved to be invaluable to increasing its penetration of that market.
Not everyone was pleased with how the show was looking though. Gerhard Meinel, import/export manager for Kraemer & Martin, a supplier of additives, said that it appeared to be much smaller than the last one in Warsaw and that he was expecting visitor numbers to be small.
"I think that for many eastern European producers this show will prove to be too expensive for them to attend," he said. "Berlin is an expensive place to stay and then there is also the travel expenses. On top of that people who travel from countries in the region that are not new member states need to have visas, which can make things too complicated for them to bother."
But for many the show is an invaluable networking experience. "For me, this FI-CEE is a good opportunity to meet with the customers I am trying to target in Eastern Europe," said Milan Fuchs, managing director of Radix, a UK-based company which supplies colour sorting equipment to ingredients suppliers. "By taking a stand here I am making my presence known to those manufacturers and showing them what my company does. It is possible that I will not sell anything, but at least those ingredients manufacturers will know where I am and what I do for the future."
More news from the FI-CEE show will be bought to you over the course of the next two days.