FHA (Food & Hotel Asia) Singapore Expo 2010

It's the end of the month already and nearly half of the year is approaching; truly, so many things are happening in a breeze! I recently attended Asia's largest food and hospitality event - Food & Hotel Asia 2010 - the Singapore Expo last week. This was my second time to go to this event. It's usually slated every 2 years in Singapore. From what I've seen and noted, indeed FHA remains to be the biggest expo in this part of the world (that is with comparison to the ones being held in the Philippines, Thailand, Hongkong, Taiwan, Japan and Korea). With at least 5 halls dedicated to food & beverage, that's more than enough tool to intrigue and delight any food enthusiast. So, where is the food industry heading?

In terms of trends and product concepts, it predominantly speaks of the same things we've known and heard of a few years ago. If I would narrow them down, most exhibit halls talk about health & wellness and indulgence.

Like these mueslis with different functionalities.

And this BLOX health drink that claims to provide "good feeling" inside-out.

Likewise, this non-alcohol cocktail drink stirred some curiosity in me. The taste is acceptable and the fruit flavors are nice.

Talk about going organic, this is the counter part in meat. "Bred free-range pork".

A sauce that is made with Budweiser beer, I don't know if this will complement the meat above.

In the snacks category, apparently new snacking options are emerging in the market. Apart from the usual potato chips and curls, there's now the flavored-dried-seaweed, bread inspired snack base and natural dried fruits and vegetables.

In the dominating food category - indulgence, chocolates lead the product line. Propositions varies on origin (belgian etc.), flavor, convenience and overall experience. Time honored recipes which are typical in baked goods are also in demand.

My favorite grabs from the expo, free culinary and wine magazines!

All in all, it was the kind of food expo those in the food manufacturing business should definitely pay a visit. It's a good venue to know what the rest of the neighbouring countries are up to in as far as commercial food products are concerned. It may not be that rich and complete in ideas and concepts to explore (may vary from year to year I guess depending on exhibitors) but sufficient enough to entice a curious appetite. For those who were not able to catch this year's event, you'll have to wait for the next one in 2012.