HONG KONG, Sept. 7, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Seafood Expo Asia, one of the region's most important exhibitions for buyers and suppliers of live, frozen, value-added, processed, packaged and premium fish and seafood, will open its doors tomorrow in Halls 5 B&C at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Organized by Diversified Communications, the exposition that runs daily from 8-10 September, will feature over 240 exhibiting companies from 31 countries, including 22 international pavilions, and showcase the world's finest fish and seafood to visitors coming from Asia and around the world.
Renowned for attracting key buyers and decision makers from across the entire industry such as retailers, importers, caterers, wholesalers, distributors, hoteliers, restaurateurs and chefs, the 2015 event which is the largest edition to date, provides the ideal platform for visitors to source high value seafood products and identify emerging trends.
The sixth edition of Seafood Expo Asia will start with a U.S. culinary demonstration, "A Taste of U.S. Seafood," presented by the U.S. Agricultural Trade Office (ATO), Food Export Association (FEA) and Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA).
A series of master classes featuring species like: Australian abalone; Korean oyster, sea squirt, eel and anchovy; Australian trout, salmon and mussels; as well as Canadian lobster and snow crab, will educate attendees on how to source, select, handle and prepare these species.
The exposition will not only feature a full schedule of master classes and cooking demonstrations, but there will also be a special focus on seafood sustainability with an industry panel discussion entitled, "Sustainability: Economic and Environmental Challenges for the Global Seafood Industry," where global opinion leaders will assess challenges of the sustainability movement and trends that will shape the industry in the future.
"The purchasing decisions of consumers are increasingly being influenced by the health, safety and environmental credentials of the food they consume," expresses Ms. Liz Plizga, Seafood Group Vice President for Diversified Communications, while noting that public awareness of sustainable seafood is on the rise.
The panel discussion will immediately be followed by a presentation to announce the finalists of the 2016 Seafood Champion Awards that recognizes individuals and organizations for their outstanding leadership in improving practices and awareness of sustainable seafood.
Among those sharing their expertise at Seafood Expo Asia will be representatives from Hoi Kee Ho Fresh Fish, Foundation Fish&Season and Jan Van As, who will jointly present a forum on "Sustainable Seafood – A Success Story from Europe." The achievement that led to the Jan Van As Chairman being awarded the Netherlands highest order - the 'Orde van Oranje-Nassau' will also be discussed. Further highlights of the presentation will be a culinary demonstration and a discussion on "The Importance of the Spawning Season."
Given that online retailers have become an important sales channel for the import of high-end seafood into China, another feature at the event will be a dedicated presentation on "E-commerce in China: Development and Opportunities." Presented by Yiguo E-Commerce, the session will share how international fish and shellfish suppliers can utilize online platforms to market their products to the Chinese market.
To further emphasize the importance of the mainland China market to the sector, there will also be a special focus on "Future Cold Chain Development in China," delivered by Swire Pacific Cold Storage.
Closing this year's event program is American company Arctic Circle Wild Salmon whose chef will demonstrate preparation techniques while explaining how to bring excitement to the menu.
"In order to maximize the networking experience for delegates, Seafood Expo Asia 2015 also sees the introduction of a new, online business matchmaking program," says Seafood Expo Asia, Show Director, Ms. Terri Tsang. "Designed to encourage and increase efficiencies in sourcing products during the exhibition, buyers and importers have been invited to use this service to initiate and arrange business meetings with exhibitors of interest."
Seafood Expo Asia's online business matchmaking compliments other initiatives at the exposition, including a networking event, featuring seafood hors d'oeuvres and wine that is open to all visitors and exhibitors and will be held on the first day of the event from 16.30 to 18.00 on Tuesday 8th September.
For the full events schedule and latest updates, please visit http://www.seafoodexpo.com/asia.
About Seafood Expo Asia
Formerly called the Asian Seafood Exposition, Seafood Expo Asia is a trade event where buyers and suppliers of seafood from around the world come together to network and conduct business in the lucrative Hong Kong and Asia-Pacific markets. The event's sixth edition takes place from 8-10 September 2015 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre in Wanchai, Hong Kong. SeafoodSource.com is the exposition's official media covering industry news year-round. The exposition is produced by Diversified Communications and is co-located with Restaurant & Bar Hong Kong. http://www.seafoodexpo.com/asia.
About Diversified Communications
Diversified Communications is a leading international media company providing market access, education and information through global, national and regional face-to-face events, digital products, publications and television stations. Diversified serves a number of industries including: seafood, food service, natural and organic, healthcare, commercial marine and business management. The company's global seafood portfolio of expositions and media includes Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America, Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global, Seafood Expo Asia and SeafoodSource.com. Diversified Communications, in partnership with SeaWeb, also produces SeaWeb Seafood Summit, the world's premier seafood conference on sustainability. Based in Portland, Maine, USA, Diversified has divisions in the Eastern United States, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Thailand and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit: www.divcom.com.
