Building on the growing success of its collaboration over the past two years, Potato Council and Horticultural Development Company (HDC) brought the largest collaborative UK stand yet to this year’s Fruit Logistica event in Berlin.
The event, held this February at Berlin’s Messe, featured 2,785 exhibitors from 83 countries, with AHDB’s Potato Council and HDC joining forces again alongside co-exhibitors from the potato and horticulture industries to showcase UK production and export opportunities to over 60,000 trade visitors.
The AHDB collaborative stand develops seed potato export opportunities from Britain and raises the profile of the quality and diversity of UK horticultural crops by providing a highly-visible platform for the industry from which to promote, do business and network.Co-exhibitors on this year’s stand included industry representatives from Moorhouse & Mohan, Live Trace and A C Goatham – all new to this event – alongside seasoned Berlin regulars such as Skea Organics, Mylnefield Research Services (MRS) Ltd, SASA (Scottish Government), Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research and growers Angus Soft Fruits, who found their first Fruit Logistica last year such a success they returned this year, reporting an equally great experience.
Carol Ford, manager at new exhibitors A C Goatham, a family firm who grow 1,650 acres of top fruit, reported “To say we are delighted with our first time exhibiting at Fruit Logistica on the Great British Pavilion really is an understatement.”
Other first-time exhibitors, Moorhouse & Mohan, worldwide exporters of potatoes, vegetables and fruit also reported “Potentially it looks like it has been a very successful show for us. We cannot fault the effort and organisation behind the stand and for us it was an excellent experience. We would be happy to book up again for next year.”
The UKTI-supported Industry Reception on the Great Britain stand was a hit once again, with a large number of potato and fresh produce colleagues and contacts joining for the welcome words from Nick Leake, Counsellor for EU and Economic Issues at the British Embassy Berlin. Alongside Potato Council and HDC, Nick opened the Reception, with its now-traditional spread of top-quality GB produce and refreshments to sample, including tasty cooked potato and root veg samples, supplied by the co-exhibitors.
Ruth Ashfield of HDC, said, “Feedback from the growers that took part on this year’s stand has been really positive. The soft and tree fruit industries have taken advantage of this platform but there are opportunities for salad and vegetable crops too. We received direct enquiries around importing carrots, sprouts and beetroot from the UK and I certainly think there is an untapped opportunity for veg growers to explore.”
Robert Burns, of Potato Council, reported “This event is now a ‘must-do’ for our industry’s international-facing seed potato and science organisations. Now we have joined forces with our AHDB colleagues in HDC, Potato Council’s modest first stand at this event five years ago has now evolved into a real ‘tour de force’ for GB seed potato exports promotion. ‘Potatoes’ is now one of the leading online search words during this event, and our annual presence has helped strengthen the potato and the GB seed exports profile at Europe’s largest fresh produce trade event. We want to see more of our GB seed potato exporters take advantage of this very high-profile marketing platform.”
Organisations interested in participating and exploring export opportunities on the UK stand at next year’s event, should look out for AHDB’s 2016 plans to be announced in the not-too-distant future.
For more information visit www.potato.org.uk or www.hdc.ahdb.org.uk
