THE NEW EVENT WILL OFFER A REVIEW OF THE OUTLOOK FOR THE INDUSTRIES
The international food industry trade fair NordicFood 2014 and the new packaging industry trade fair NordicPack 2014 will be held at the Tampere Exhibition and Sports Centre in Tampere in Finland from 8 to 10 October 2014. The event will provide an extensive view of the general development and topical themes within the food and packaging industries and introduce products, services and new innovations. Both industries will go through several reforms this year as well as in the near future and they will be discussed throughout the trade fair. The Nordic Bakery Cup and the Nordic Pastry Cup will also be held as part of the NordicFood trade fair, with Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark competing for the titles. This will be the first ever Pastry Cup, while the Bakery Cup will be held for the fourth time.
“It is fantastic that the successful international food industry trade fair will now be accompanied by the packaging industry trade fair. These two industries are closely connected and by developing them together they will support each other's growth. The NordicFood and NordicPack trade fairs will form an extensive and diverse event where the food and packaging industries will appear as active industries of the future. This event will give professionals an opportunity to do a lot of networking, interact directly with the principals and compare different products, services and suppliers. The event will be particularly beneficial for decision-makers and professionals who need clear information on future prospects to support their business decisions. The topics of discussion will include package labeling, additive issues, the Oiva smileys campaign as well as biodegradable materials and recycling. The competitions will also support the professionals' personal growth and add an interesting element to the trade fairs,” says Bakery Director Jarmo Talasrinne of Linkosuon Leipomo Oy.
Packaging companies and importers will have increased responsibility for the collection and recycling of packaging waste
One of the topical themes at the trade fair will be the producers' responsibility for their products, as packaging companies and importers of packaged products will have increased responsibility for the collection and recycling of their packaging waste. The most significant change is the fact that in the future producers will have to organize the collection and recycling of consumer packaging. The consumer collection organized by the producers must be in use by 1 January 2016. Hence, the planning of this reform is well underway. For individual companies the biggest change will be the rise in the costs of producer responsibility.
“The greatest challenge is to make the change efficiently and in a consumer-friendly manner. The increased number of obligations is estimated to multiply the costs of producer responsibility. In addition to cost-effectiveness, it is important to ensure that sorting is easy for the consumers. The commercial and industrial sectors will, thus, be involved in making sustainable recycling possible for their customers. It now makes even more sense for companies with producer responsibilities to contact PYR and transfer their obligations to the producer organizations. The extended responsibility highlights the importance of cooperation to minimize the costs. From a consumer's point of view, the change can be seen in the increased number of sorting points in connection with stores. The aim is also to standardize the sorting instructions throughout the country. The change will not really affect the collection of packaging waste from properties, but municipalities may reduce the number of their own regional collection points,” says Managing Director Juha-Heikki Tanskanen of the Environmental Register of Packaging PYR Ltd.
Tanskanen will speak about producer responsibility on Wednesday 8 October during the opening seminar. Hannu Kottonen, CEO of HKScan Corporation, will discuss Finland's competitiveness and trade policy, while Heikki Juutinen, Director General of the Finnish Food and Drink Industries’ Federation (ETL), will focus on the political perspective and general outline of the food industry and Juha Gröhn, CEO of Atria Plc, will discuss export, export programs and becoming established.
The deadline for the package labeling reform will soon be here
Another topical matter within the packaging industry is the labeling reform and the new EU food information regulation that will take effect on 13 December 2014. Most food companies have reacted to the reform in time and packaging is now being updated accordingly. This topic will be discussed extensively at the trade fair.
“The reform will improve consumer protection. The compulsory labeling requirements will mainly be the same as they are in the current regulation. One of the essential differences is the minimum font size defined in Article 13. The challenge is that the required minimum font size will force many companies to redesign their packaging. This is especially the case for small packages. There has been a three-year transition period, but there are definitely companies that will struggle to meet the deadline of December. This topic will be extensively discussed during the seminars. Tampere is an excellent venue and therefore our expectations for the NordicPack and NordicFood trade fairs are high. I believe that now that there are finally some signs of economic recovery in the air, this is a good time to invest in future activities. What we need now is a positive attitude,” says Director Risto Laiho of the Finnish Packaging Association.
Reforms, safety and quality issues as well as local food will be included in the program
The topical seminar of the Finnish Food and Drink Industries’ Federation will discuss the effects of the new food information regulation on package labeling, package labeling in the logistics chain, the product information services reform and occupational safety risks. The Aitoja Makuja II (True Flavors II) and Parasta Pöytään Pirkanmaalta (The Best to Your Table from Pirkanmaa) projects will hold a seminar entitled Aitoja makuja – lähiruoka on bisnes (“True flavors – local food is a business”). The seminar will describe the past and future measures to promote the sales of local food and the regional impacts of local food. The seminar will also provide a review of the development of the industry. The topical food and packaging information sessions will focus on, for example, quality systems, food safety, self-monitoring, the food industry internationalization program and the utilization of user experiences in the development of products and packaging.
Nordic bakery and pastry championships will be held at the trade fair
Nordic bakery and pastry championships, known as Nordic Bakery Cup 2014 and Nordic Pastry Cup 2014 will be held in connection with the trade fair. The competitions will have participants from Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. This will be the first ever Pastry Cup, while the Bakery Cup will now be held for the fourth time. The competitions will be organized by Tampere Trade Fairs Ltd. and the Finnish Bakery Association together with their partners.
The competitions will begin on Wednesday 8 October with the Nordic Pastry Cup and the theme will be Romantic. Each country will have a team of two pastry chefs who will have eight hours to make a chocolate dessert plate, petit fours and a three-tier wedding cake. On Thursday and Friday, teams of three bakers will battle each other in the Nordic Bakery Cup. This year the theme will be Nordic nature. The bakers will make bread and pastries and demonstrate their other baking skills. Each country will also send a judge to both the bakery and pastry competitions. The winners of the competitions will be selected based on the four judges' evaluations.
NordicFood (formerly Food Fair) is one of the leading Nordic trade fairs for the food industry. The event will be more extensive than ever before, covering the entire food industry cycle from early production to the end-user and recycling. NordicPack will present the entire packaging industry cycle from manufacturers to distributors and material recycling. The featured product groups include labeling, flexo printing, traceability, recycling, transport, software, packaging, services and RFID. The event will bring together the key operators of the food and packaging industries, businesses, decision-makers and employees. The event will be organized by Tampere Trade Fairs Ltd. together with the Finnish Meat Trade Association, the Finnish Food and Drink Industries’ Federation and the Finnish Bakery Association.
Further information: www.nordicfoodexpo.fi, www.nordicpackexpo.fi
Tampere Trade Fairs Ltd., www.tampereenmessut.fi
Tanja Järvensivu, Communications Manager, tel. +358 50 536 8133,
tanja.jarvensivu(a)tampereenmessut.fi
Meri Mattila, Communications Assistant, tel. +358 400 914 877,
meri.mattila(a)tampereenmessut.fi
NordicFood:
Mikael Wänskä, Project Manager, tel. +358 40 350 0445,
mikael.wanska(a)tampereenmessut.fi
NordicPack:
Raimo Pylvänäinen, Project Manager, tel. +358 400 671 923,
raimo.pylvanainen(a)tampereenmessut.fi
© Koodiviidakko Oy - Y-tunnus 1939962-1