In a world where oat milk has outlived common sense and lab-grown salmon is no longer the stuff of science fiction, it seems only fitting that the food world’s most elaborate trade show is doubling down on reinvention.
There are trade shows, and then there’s THAIFEX – ANUGA ASIA, bringing with it an unsettling number of buzzwords, ambitious chefs and alternative proteins. From May 27-31 at IMPACT, Muang Thong Thani, the region’s most sprawling food and beverage gathering is set to occupy Bangkok’s cavernous exhibition halls, with over 3,100 companies hawking everything from drinks, fine food, food technology, frozen food, fruits and vegetables, meat, rice, seafood and sweets and confectionery – and if you’re wondering what that actually includes, you can check right here.
It’s all orchestrated by Thailand’s Department of International Trade Promotion, the Thai Chamber of Commerce and German events heavyweight Koelnmesse. Expect 90,000 industry visitors, 2,000 serious buyers, and a rotating cast of regional policymakers, trend forecasters and flavour evangelists.
This year’s iteration casts its net wider, welcoming newcomers from Central Asia to Eastern Europe, with fresh national pavilions from Australia, Hong Kong and the Netherlands. The theme? ‘Beyond Food Experience’ – a catch-all phrase for the industry’s growing obsession with functionality and virtue. Expect edible optimism in the form of gut-friendly sodas, brain-boosting snacks and plant-based proteins that swear they taste like the real thing. It’s food reimagined not just to nourish, but to align with whatever lifestyle, identity or algorithm we’re currently subscribing to.
Standouts include the Trend Zone, partnered with Innova Market Insights (a sort of crystal ball for supermarket shelves), THAIFEX – ANUGA Startup, which showcases next-gen kitchen disruptors, and the Thailand Ultimate Chef Challenge, judged by culinary powerhouses like Willment Leong and Aiden Jongsung Ahn. There’s even an Alternative Protein Taste & Flavour Challenge where visitors get to crown the best faux-meat.
In short: it’s the food of the future, garnished and served. Whether anyone’s hungry for it is another matter.
Registration is now open at registration.thaifex-anuga.com. For the full menu of events, visit thaifex-anuga.com.