Largest-ever Seafood Expo Global opens Tuesday, 25 April

The largest-ever Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global opens tomorrow, 25 April at the Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Vía exhibition grounds.

The latest edition of the expo will occupy 49,339 net square meters of exhibit space, a 24 percent increase over last year and 21 percent larger than the 2019 edition in Brussels, Belgium. The expo features 2,078 exhibiting companies from 87 countries – 847 of which are new exhibitors – and 68 national and regional pavilions. 

The 2022 Seafood Expo Global surpassed 26,000 total attendance following its move to Barcelona, Spain – despite the complications caused by Covid-19.

“Last year’s successful first edition in Barcelona was an indication that the industry was ready to be back in-person after two years of not being able to gather due to the pandemic,” Diversified Communications U.S.A. President Liz Plizga said in a release. “This year’s increased interest and significant growth in participation confirms that the industry relies on the expo to ensure business continuity.”

The expo will feature companies from a number of new countries, including Austria, Barbados, Cyprus, Fiji, Gambia, Hong Kong, Hungary, Republic of Moldova, Myanmar, New Caledonia, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Seychelles, Solomon Islands, Suriname and Switzerland, Diversified said. [Editor’s note: Diversified Communications also owns and operates SeafoodSource.]

A number of countries are also hosting new pavilions, including Australia, Saudi Arabia, the Seychelles, and Soloman Islands. New regions of Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Taiwan, and the U.S. will also take part, and Galicia, Spain – absent from the expo in 2022 – is returning. Other returning pavilions will be larger than before, including China, Catalonia, Portugal, and the Netherlands.

New companies exhibiting at the expo among the 847 new exhibitors include Atunes y Lomos, Blumar, Lineage Logistics, and Golden Fish Sarl. Diversified also said a number of key players from the industry are returning, including AquaChile, Nueva Pescanova, Mowi, Frime, Marel, and Baader.

“Exhibitors in Seafood Expo Global halls will display the most recent innovations in seafood – fresh, frozen, tinned, value-added, processed and packaged – to buyers from the industry across the world including supermarkets, restaurants, hotels, caterers, importers, distributors, seafood markets, and other retail and hospitality companies,” Diversified said.

A conference program is also running throughout the three days of Seafood Expo Global, featuring more than 85 international experts including Javier Garat, chairman of the International Coalition of Fisheries Associations (ICFA); Joe Bundrant, CEO of Trident Seafoods; Laurène Jolly, policy officer at the European Commission (DG MARE); and more. The program will cover “leadership in the seafood industry, the development of markets for fish and aquaculture, sustainability and sustainable fisheries, projects to combat the effects of climate change and its challenges, traceability, and opportunities and solutions for the industry at a global scale,” Diversified said.

“Seafood Expo Global and Seafood Processing Global is the global platform where suppliers and buyers come to meet, network, launch, or find new products and achieve their business goals,” Plizga said.  

Photo by Chris Chase/SeafoodSource