During Interfresh Eurasia from 26 - 28 September, the Turkish fruit industry will meet at the Izmir Exhibition Centre. As one of the most important sales markets for the Turkish export industry, the trade fair is also traditionally an important industry meeting place for German-Turkish companies to exchange ideas with suppliers and customers on site. In the run-up to this year's Interfresh Eurasia, we spoke to several German-Turkish participants about the development of the three-day event and this year's edition.
New venue in Izmir
In previous years, the trade fair was held in Antalya in south-west Turkey, in the heart of an important growing region. This year, however, the organising team has opted for the port city of Izmir, almost 500 km to the north-west. For the companies based in the fruit stronghold of Antalya, the change of venue is rather disadvantageous. "We are not exhibiting for the first time because Izmir is too far away from Antalya, and we are in the middle of the fig season," says firm exhibitor Tufan Ünal from Meta GmbH.
The Wuppertal-based company Fresh & Cash has also decided not to have its own stand this time after taking part last year. "The trade fair is primarily a showcase, so a stand of our own is not necessary, at least for us," says Co-Managing Director Ayber Cebba. Interfresh Eurasia has successfully established itself in the fruit sector in particular. "The trade fair takes place at the start of the pomegranate, grape and citrus season, which is of course ideal. It must also be said that Turkey has developed strongly as an export country over the past decade. The quality of the produce and the product packaging have improved, which is why Turkish produce is now in no way inferior to its Spanish or Italian counterparts. At the same time, the diversity of the export range continues to increase: Turkish dragon fruit has established itself strongly in the last two years and the export volume of Turkish blueberries is also increasing strongly."
German-Turkish companies at Interfresh Eurasia 2023. Clockwise: The stand of Disfruta GmbH, Tufan Ünal (m) from Meta GmbH, Saban Cetin (m) from Cetinaya GmbH in Bremen, Cevdet Cavusoglu from the Wuppertal-based company Fresh & Cash.
Similar potential to Fruit Attraction
Interfresh Eurasia is primarily a platform for Turkish fruit exporters and other industry players, although the trade fair attracts more foreign participants every year. Around 180 exhibitors have already confirmed their participation this year, which is a significant increase on the previous record. Ersan Yildizak from Disfruta GmbH was already represented as an exhibitor last year and has opted for an extended stand area this time. "We have already confirmed our participation for the coming years, as we believe that the trade fair has similar growth potential to Fruit Attraction a few years ago."
According to Yildizak, the relocation is not necessarily detrimental to the further development of the trade fair. "Antalya is of course ideal given its location in the heart of the country's largest growing region, but the Izmir exhibition centre is much larger and more modern," says Yildizak, who is dedicated to importing Turkish figs, grapes, pomegranates and Santa Maria pears, among other things.
For more information:
www.freshandcash.de
www.dis-fruta.de
www.pasam.de