pacprocess MEA delivers a convincing debut

The first pacprocess Middle East Africa, which took place at the Egypt International Exhibition Center in Cairo from 9 to 11 December 2019, was impressive from the start. This interpack alliance trade fair was organised by Messe Düsseldorf in cooperation with IFP Group and Konzept. Exhibitors were very satisfied with the quality and number of visitors as well as the organisational quality and location of the event. They also regarded combining pacprocess MEA with the already well-established Food Africa trade fair, which took place in parallel, an excellent idea. The two events drew a total of 21,640 visitors.

Prior to its launch, pacprocess MEA already received support from the highest political levels, as it was sponsored by the Egyptian President H. E. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly’s opening tour emphasised the high regard the policy makers have for the trade fair; they count on viable trade fair concepts to draw investors to the land by the Nile and are developing markets accordingly. Egypt pursues the self-imposed aim of becoming a business hub for the region. Besides renowned companies, a large number of government institutions and associations are represented on the pacprocess MEA advisory board.

“pacprocess MEA has clearly exceeded our expectations as well as those of the companies involved. The feedback we received regarding generated leads and general interest was exceptionally high for a debut event. The interest in modern process and packaging technology and the corresponding materials is tangible in this country,” said Bernd Jablonowski, Global Portfolio Manager at Messe Düsseldorf, clearly pleased with the outcome.

pacprocess MEA 2019 welcomed 125 exhibiting companies, among them 31 international companies from 12 countries. The German delegation was represented by ten companies at the respective group stand. The event addressed the interpack alliance’s eight core target groups: food, beverages, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, confectionery and baked goods, consumer and industrial goods – covering the entire value chain in each category. The trade fair also addressed providers of packaging, packaging materials and the relevant manufacturing technology. Recycling, environmental technology and packaging printing were other topics of interest at the event.

The combination of pacprocess MEA with Food Africa, a trade fair for food products organised by IFP Group and Konzept, proved ideal. In general, all companies agreed that this parallelism allows for a great many synergies in the field of food. Both events were accompanied by an excellently attended conference programme in the trade fair halls, with speakers who focussed on general topics such as sustainable packaging and the recycling economy, future industry trends as well as SAVE FOOD. Contents specific to the region were also addressed, such as important trade agreements in Africa and new export regulations.

The exhibitor feedback on the trade fair run in general was also extremely positive. The event clearly exceeded the expectations of many companies; as a result, some already expressed a strong interest in the next edition of pacprocess MEA. This annual event will take place at the Egypt International Exhibition Center in Cairo from 17 to 19 December 2020, once again in parallel to the Food Africa trade fair. Exhibitors can contact Messe Düsseldorf to register.