Businesses promote their food products at the HCMC FOODEX expo that opened on May 15. — Photo congthuong.vn

International food and foodstuff exhibition HCMC FOODEX 2024 opened yesterday with the participation of nearly 400 businesses and organisations.

It is held by the Investment and Trade Promotion Centre (ITPC) of HCM City and HCM City Food and Foodstuff Association at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in District 7.

Đào Minh Chánh, deputy director of the ITPC, said HCMC FOODEX has become an ideal forum for localities, businesses in food and foodstuffs and others to promote high-quality products to domestic and foreign visitors.

The exhibition has around 500 stalls showcasing raw or processed ingredients such as seafood, agricultural produce, seasonings, highly processed products, beverages, and machinery for packaging and preservation of food.

There will be networking activities to help business connect with distributors, e-commerce platforms and international buyers, and conferences on a wide range of topics such as sustainable development, ensuring quality of instant packaged food products and exporting through e-commerce.

Nguyễn Văn Dũng, deputy chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee, said the food and foodstuff industry accounts for 15 per cent of the city’s industrial production, and is one of its four key priority sectors.

There is also a cooking competition held by the organisers along with the city’s Professional Chefs’ Guild.

Twenty teams will prepare a menu comprising five contemporary dishes from Vietnamese agricultural produce to promote them.

HCMC FOODEX 2024 will go on until May 18, and expects to attract around 18,000 visitors. — VNS