THAIFEX - Anuga Asia 2024 surges with international exhibitors, visitors

NONTHABURI, Thailand —The most extensive and impactful edition of THAIFEX - Anuga Asia 2024 has concluded, solidifying its position as Asia’s premier food and beverage trade show. This year’s event, themed “Beyond Food Experience,” showcased groundbreaking innovations, facilitated international partnerships and brought forth the industry’s future trends.

Attendance at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia 2024 hit a new record with 3,133 exhibitors from 52 countries or regions and 85,850 visitors from 131 countries/regions, of which 19,984 were foreign (an increase of 21.6% over 2023). Of the exhibitors, 2,024 were international, including participants from 9 new countries, including Bolivia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Macedonia, Mexico, Yemen, Kazakhstan and Oman, making their debut at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia.

International exhibitors extended across 12% more floor space than any other edition of the trade show, and the number of countries/provincial groups that exhibited at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia increased from 39 in 2023 to 57 in 2024.

“THAIFEX - Anuga Asia has once again proven its international significance, drawing participants from across the globe and fostering meaningful industry connections,” said Mathias Kuepper, managing director and VP Asia-Pacific, Koelnmesse. “For the past 100 years, Koelnmesse has been instrumental in building trade relations. Events like THAIFEX - Anuga Asia continue to build bridges between businesses, people and nations.”

THAIFEX - Anuga Asia 2024 featured 11 signature trade shows, 11 trends, six special shows and three supporting programmes, including the Hosted Buyer Programme, the Future Food Experience+ talks and the Thailand Ultimate Chef Challenge. 

International expansion in 2025

“We see tremendous interest from international exhibitors at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia to expand their footprint significantly at the show in 2025, driven by the immense benefits and successful outcomes they’ve experienced at the event this year,” said Wendy Lim, general manager for Food & Food Technology Exhibitions Asia-Pacific, Koelnmesse. 

The Italian pavilion aims to double its floor space to showcase 50 to 100 brands, driven by the tremendous interest in Italian food in Thailand and expanding business from Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia and Indonesia. The Malaysia Business Group plans to increase its space from 270sqm to 432sqm. Macau SAR pavilion, organised by Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, a first-time exhibitor, also plans to double its space in 2025, reflecting the value it places on the partnerships built at this year’s event. 

Dealmaking

“This is the most promising trade show I’ve attended in some time,” claimed Jannis Theileis, General Manager of Powermints, an exhibitor at the German pavilion. 

A key reason for the keen interest from country pavilions is the sheer number of quality buyers their brands are interacting with from across the world. THAIFEX - Anuga Asia curated and sponsored 1,935 hosted buyers from 46 countries/regions to attend the show. 

One of the buyers, Joel Leong, Regional Business head of Surya Foods, said, “I’ve been to THAIFEX - Anuga Asia more than 10 times now and it’s a very fulfilling experience, even compared to the other exhibitions we attend around the world. We source from over 50 suppliers at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia, so we come over here to meet our suppliers rather than travel to different countries to meet them.”

Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) exhibitors said they had generated leads with buyers not only from Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia and Vietnam but also from Germany, Dubai and other European countries. Additionally, other exhibitors mentioned interactions with buyers from Australia and New Zealand, Africa and America. 

Partnership developments

THAIFEX - Anuga Asia 2024 was a hub for forging new partnerships and collaborations. Notable announcements included the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) endorsing THAIFEX - Anuga Asia as an official trade partner from 2025 to strengthen and expand international trade opportunities for US food and beverage companies in the Asian market. The United States pavilion will double in size to feature a cafe and showcase a wider range of high-quality American products and innovative solutions. 

Poland reinforced its robust bilateral relations with Thailand by sending a large delegation and conducting strategic business matching sessions this year. Norbert Bak, Bangkok Bureau Chief of the Polish Investment and Trade Agency, remarked, “We are thrilled to see the show exceed our expectations in size and quality leads. The organization here is simply perfect.” 

The Norwegian Seafood Council’s pavilion expanded to include 22 Norwegian exporters and released its fourth annual ‘Top Seafood Consumer Trends’ report, Oceans of Change. They reported a 10% growth in overall Norwegian seafood exports to Thailand compared to the same period in 2023, valued at THB 3.6 billion. 

Innovative trends

There were many opportunities at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia 2024 to explore the future of food. At the Future Food Experience+ program, 33 guest speakers and 13 startup presenters led 28 sessions of talks and panel sessions. Topics included advancements in nutrition, sustainable processing, deep tech innovations and F&B trends. 

The tasteInnovation Show, the Alternative Protein Flavour & Taste Contest, and the THAIFEX - Anuga Startup Pavilion demonstrated developments in plant-based foods and alternative proteins (derived from mushrooms, for example), which are being incorporated into ready-to-eat meals and snacks without altering taste or texture.

Halal-certified foods comprised 20% of the exhibited products, with 1,035 items displayed across the trade show. Additionally, over 900 ready-to-eat products, including nutrient-fortified snacks and meals, made up 19% of the exhibited products.

Thailand Ultimate Chef Challenge (TUCC)

One of Asia’s most prestigious culinary competitions, TUCC brought together over 434 chefs to compete across 23 categories, judged by a panel of 46 international experts. Six were crowned Thailand’s Ultimate Chef for their category. The winners were: 

• Best Ultimate Pastry Chef Award went to Ju Yeon Anh (Korea)
• Best Ultimate Junior Chef Award went to Natthapol Khunyodying (Chiang Mai Chefs Association)
• Best Ultimate Professional Chef Award went to Jaturong Mayurowas (Chiang Mai Chefs Association)
• Best Ultimate Asian Chef Award went to Anuchit Saeng-On (Vinum Wine & Bistro)
• Best Ultimate Establishment Award went to Chiang Mai Chefs Association
• Best Ultimate Asian Gourmet Challenge Award went to Chitralada Technology Institute

Economic and regional impact

THAIFEX - Anuga Asia plays a crucial role in driving economic growth and development, significantly contributing to the local economy through increased tourism and hospitality sector engagement. Business matching sessions facilitated valuable partnerships and collaborations, furthering the reach of participating companies.

Mark Law, secretary of the Malaysia Business Group, remarked that Malaysian exhibitors across the show had closed $10 million in deals over the first three days of the show. Nam Seng Food Industries Sdn Bhd closed a $300,000 deal with a Canadian buyer on the show’s first day. Malaysia was the third largest country pavilion at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia.

First-time exhibitor Alexander Ljusic, operations manager from SOKO Gorica dooel Macedonia, was delighted with the show. “As the only Macedonia company presenting these products in the drinks sector, we’ve received significant interest and leads. Many companies have visited our booth to taste our products, which has led to promising business opportunities. Given the high number of leads, we are optimistic about turning these into concrete business deals, which will likely bring us back next year,” he said.

Based in Thailand, THAIFEX - Anuga also offers opportunities for Thai companies like King Coffee, NSL Foods and Laitram Machinery to broaden their product reach and forge new partnerships at the show. A spokesperson for Laitram Machinery said: “This event provides us with a platform to connect with industry leaders, explore new business opportunities in new regions and demonstrate our commitment to driving excellence in food processing.”

Joel Leong further emphasised that attending THAIFEX - Anuga Asia is a worthwhile investment: “We have grown our business to greater heights with THAIFEX - Anuga Asia. I manage oriental procurements for our company, which has a turnover of USD 300 million, and this year we spent about $10 million dollars at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia alone.”

THAIFEX — Anuga Asia 2024 continues to set benchmarks in the F&B industry, providing a platform for innovation, partnership and growth. The event underscores Thailand’s strategic importance in accessing the regional and global F&B landscape.

THAIFEX - Anuga Asia is returning from May 27 to 31, 2025. For more information and updates on upcoming events, visit the THAIFEX - Anuga Asia website.