The Canadian Food & Beverage Show and the HostEx Show attract many of the same visitors, but the annual events have always operated separately, at different times of the year. That has changed since March 2nd, when the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (C.R.F.A.) brings the two shows together under one roof in a new location—the Direct Energy Centre at Exhibition Place. This is the largest food and beverage trade show in Canada, drawing over 700 exhibitors and 11,000 trade visitors.
The show had 1,700 booths and included cooking demonstrations by top local chefs (including Mark McEwan and Lynn Crawford), cookbook signings, and a series of free seminars that addressed such food-service challenges as labour shortages and energy costs.
Visitors walked away with a different feeling about this industry. It’s always been underserved by the shows, and it’s a much bigger industry than most people realize—$56 billion in Canada. Seeing all these products and services together made people in the industry quite proud of the business they’re in and the professionalism that’s available to them, right from the chefs to the manufacturers and suppliers in the service industry.
Source: http://www.crfa.ca/aboutcrfa/newsroom/2008/crfa_show_wrap-up.asp
