Numerous opportunities for the development of the F&B sector through the 12th International Exhibition on food, beverages, restaurants and hotels

DNHN - The Food & Hotel Vietnam 2024 exhibition is an event aimed at promoting trade, creating a bridge for international brands to connect with importers, distributors, retailers and businesses in the food and beverage and hospitality sectors in Vietnam.

In addition, Food & Hotel Vietnam 2024 will also support the Vietnamese F&B, restaurant and hotel community by acting as a destination for the latest information and trends in the sector, and by celebrating and nurturing young talent in the food and beverage industry.

In this context, Food & Hotel Vietnam 2024 is returning, attracting exhibitors from 27 countries and territories, including the UK, India, Poland, Belgium, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Taiwan (China), Germany, South Korea, the United States, Hong Kong (China), Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Japan, France, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, China, Uzbekistan, Australia, Vietnam and several other countries, and is expected to attract more than 17,000 trade visitors.

According to Mr Ben Wong – General Director of Informa Markets Vietnam: “Sustainable nutrition for a growing population is one of the efforts that the Vietnamese food industry needs to focus on. In the coming period, we will continue to witness significant changes in the way the food and hospitality industry operates. By connecting the ecosystem of the most innovative food, restaurant and hotel suppliers from around the world, with more than 300 exhibitors and thousands of different brands, we hope that businesses in Vietnam can find the right suppliers, grow their businesses and bring products closer to consumers.”

The Vietnamese foodservice market is expected to reach US$22.72 billion in 2024 and US$36.29 billion in 2029, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.82% during the period 2024 – 2029 (Mordor Intelligence, 2023). Of these, the fastest growing segment is the “cloud kitchen” model, with a CAGR expected to reach 18.12%. According to another report by Mordor Intelligence, approximately 73.2% of the population actively uses the Internet, 53% of whom use online food delivery services such as GrabFood and GoFood. These delivery apps have strongly promoted the cloud restaurant platform. The average order value of restaurants will grow by 5.35%/year during the period 2023 – 2029. QR code payments, ordering and home delivery are becoming more popular in restaurants and eateries. The variety of options such as ordering, pre-ordering or fast delivery has made the competition between restaurants fiercer, especially in terms of price. In addition, the launch of the Michelin Guide and tourism activities have also helped to promote Vietnamese cuisine internationally and expand the scale of the industry.

Along with the food industry, international tourism has also rebounded strongly in 2023, boosting demand for accommodation and food and beverage services. The number of international tourists to Vietnam reached approximately 12.6 million in 2023, 3.4 times higher than in 2022, exceeding the target of 8 million set earlier (General Statistics Office, 2023). The number of newly registered travel businesses and the workforce in the tourism industry have also increased, with many high-end 4-5 stars tourist accommodation facilities being put into operation. As of the end of 2023, Vietnam had 3,921 international travel businesses, an increase of 1,027 businesses compared to 2022. Overall, Vietnam currently has approximately 38,000 tourist accommodation establishments with 780,000 rooms, including 247 5-star accommodation establishments (80,896 rooms) and 368 4-star accommodation establishments (50,716 rooms). With the successes of the past year, in 2024, the Vietnamese tourism industry continues to set ambitious targets, attracting 17 – 18 million international visitors, and aiming for a total revenue of approximately US$34.6 billion (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, 2024).

Ms Vu Kim Hanh - Chairwoman of the Association of High-Quality Vietnamese Goods Enterprises said that in the context of difficulties and market decline, Food & Hotel Vietnam 2024 brings great opportunities and benefits to businesses by enabling them to connect directly, receive experience sharing from foreign businesses and access new food trends in the world market. This is a great opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to access new technologies and new partners around the world instead of spending a lot of money to study abroad”,

In line with general trends in the Asian region, Vietnamese consumers are increasingly focusing on healthy food. Food packages and machinery for home cooking, as well as healthy, nutritious products, are becoming increasingly popular. The demand for plant-based protein is expected to increase by 25% in Asia over the next 5 years. Health and environmental concerns are driving consumers to choose meat alternatives. In addition, the functional food and nutritional supplement market is expected to reach US$71 billion by 2025 due to increasing disposable income and consumer awareness of health.

The event will also feature the Vietnam Culinary Challenge (VNCC) 2024 for talented Vietnamese chefs; the Vietnam Barista Competition (VBC); and the Vietnam Aromaster Championship (VAC), the only coffee aroma competition in Vietnam. Here, young talents, the future architects of modern cuisine and beverage making, will showcase their talents through the competition.

In addition, the Exhibition features many high-quality seminar topics that are closely aligned with market demand, presented by some countries, such as “Sustainable F&B trends and opportunities to increase the value of Vietnamese products”, “Introducing basic knowledge of Japanese alcoholic beverages through tasting experiences and demand in Vietnam”; “Innovation and development for food packaging - Advanced MAP gas packaging technology” and keynote discussions, including: “How are Vietnamese food consumers different from those in Southeast Asia? What does this mean for the food service market?”, “Exploring local tastes and preferences in Vietnam compared to other Southeast Asian countries”.

Thu Hien