Ireland's largest food, drink and hospitality exhibition, at which an estimated €30 million worth of business will be conducted during the next two days, opened yesterday in the RDS, Dublin.
IFEX 19 has attracted more that 250 companies from across the world to the trade exhibition, which is taking place at the Simmonscourt Hall in Ballsbridge.
The event is now a major one on the international calendar of food purchasers, and the organisers estimate that over 5,000 national and international buyers are likely to visit the show. Now in its 19th year, the fair has been given an added significance this year by the presence of a special Irish Food Board section where over 60 speciality food companies are displaying their goods.
Under Bord Bia's "Ireland, the Food Island" banner, the companies involved vary from one-person operations to companies employing up to a dozen people. Muiris Kennedy, director of Bord Bia's client services, said this sector of the Irish food industry had an output value last year of €430 million at factory gate prices.
"This represented a 13 per cent increased turnover on last year and this was the best performing food sector in Ireland," he said.
"This is a great venue for small companies involved in speciality production to come and test the market.
"It is being used as a testing ground for product and gives manufacturers an opportunity to meet the buyers," he said.
Next door to the An Bord Bia stand is the Northern Ireland stand with 10 companies grouped together. Other groups exhibiting at the event were the Brussels and Walloon regions of Belgium, Germany's central marketing agency and enterprises from Italy, France, Poland , Australia and Britain.
While most Irish people know that Britain is our largest outlet for food exports, few realise that Ireland is the UK's largest export market for food and drink.
Last year, according to Food From Britain, the market development consultancy which helps British companies to build their international business, British food and drink sales to Ireland were worth £1.7 billion. Food from Britain said that because of the importance of the Irish market it had come to the fair with five companies.
There is a wide range of food at the fair, anything from crocodile steak to buffalo meat to organic food.