Bord Bia is targeting more than 10 million European consumers with Irish beef promotions as this year’s most influential food and drink trade show kicks off in Germany.
20 Irish food companies ranging from wild venison to global dairy exporters are participating at the world’s largest trade food fair in Cologne, Germany, this week.
Bord Bia is organising and coordinating the Irish presence at Anuga, a biennial event which attracts more than 170,000 trade buyers from 187 countries.
Irish beef promotion
Anuga falls as Bord Bia kicks off its autumn campaigns across Europe with beef marketing across key UK and EU markets to specifically spotlight Irish quality-assured beef.
In Germany, Bord Bia’s beef campaign is estimated to reach 10 million people. Germany represents Ireland’s fourth largest export for Irish food and drink with an export value of €992 million in 2022.
Bord Bia’s consumer-facing autumn beef promotional campaign includes 366 billboards located in four regions across Germany, which it said will reach over eight million consumers.
From October 5-10, almost two million consumers will see Irish beef advertising on a giant digital screen outside the LANXESS arena in Cologne, visible from a high-traffic commuter belt near the entrance to the Koln Messe trade fair centre, where Anuga is taking place.
Anuga is a landmark event on the food and drink industry calendar and attracts over 4,600 exhibitors and 70,000 visitors from around the globe.
Minister of State with responsibility for research and development, farm safety, and new market development, Martin Heydon, is in Cologne this week to officially launch the Irish presence at Anuga.
Speaking in advance of his visit, Minister Heydon welcomed Ireland’s strong presence at what is widely regarded as the most important trade event in the international food and drink calendar.
“Anuga remains a crucial event on the food industry calendar and flagship events such as this are fundamental to the industry’s drive in building exports,” Minister Heydon said.
“Against the backdrop of a difficult global trading environment this year and disruptions to the entire supply chain, Ireland has continued to maintain its reputation as a world-class sustainable food producer and supplier.
“Anuga is pivotal to continuing this growth for industry as it offers a unique opportunity to meet and build relationships with new and existing customers.”
Bord Bia CEO Jim O’Toole said that in addition to its autumn campaign activity, Bord Bia had undertaken a major pre-event trade marketing and awareness campaign to promote the Irish industry’s presence at Anuga, including targeting key influential buyers to visit the Ireland-Origin Green stand.
“Anuga is the biggest trade show in the year, so targeting international buyers to visit the Ireland stand is instrumental for Irish companies to fast-track negotiations with new and existing customers,” O’Toole said.
“Our national sustainability programme, Origin Green, is a key differentiation point for Irish companies aiming to target buyers from major retail and food service establishments across Europe who all have sustainability targets to meet.
“The theme of Anuga 2023 is ‘Sustainable Growth’ and this is where Ireland will shine as this is integral to Irish farming and a concept our industry has always been working towards.”
Beef campaign
Ireland’s autumn beef campaigns will also take place in the UK, Netherlands and Italy, according to Bord Bia.
In addition to instore promotions across Europe, there will be over 650 quality-assured Irish steak advertisements running on billboards in Milan, Rome and Florence in Italy.
In the UK, Bord Bia is partnering with Michelin star chef, Paul Foster, to promote Irish beef at his new restaurant Grass Fed in Camden.
Jim O’Toole added: “Bord Bia is conscious of the challenges faced by farmers and those working along the supply chain and we believe this suite of promotional activities across key European countries and the UK will enhance sales of Irish beef across markets in our peak supply period.”
Bord Bia is organising and coordinating the Irish presence at a host of other European trade fairs for retail and food service channels in the coming months.
These include Conxemar in Spain, Natexpo in France and Food Ingredients Europe in Germany in November.