The future of out-of-home at SIGEP's "Vision Plaza"

International events and guests plot the coordinates of an ever-evolving global scenario. The drivers of recovery in Europe, China, Asia and North America. Sustainability, new consumer habits, digital: this is the programme that Italian Exhibition Group is offering artisan dolce foodservice professionals at Rimini Expo Centre from 12th to 16th March 2022.

New consumer habits, sustainable choices, digital technologies and development opportunities for foreign markets. At Sigep - The Dolce World Expo, Italian Exhibition Group's artisan foodservice event to be held at Rimini Expo Centre from 12th to 16th March, "Vision Plaza" will be back to plot the co-ordinates of global trends in gelato, pastry, chocolate, artisan bakery and coffee. More than 30 talks, workshops and international events with analysts, associations, academics, schools and sector media have been scheduled.

Set up in the South Hall of the Expo Centre, "Vision Plaza" will come alive on Saturday 12th March with an opening talk on "Sustainability as a driver for growth in the out-of-home sector": an opportunity for sector renewal that responds well to the expectations of consumers, who are becoming increasingly sensitive to environmental issues. Discussions will be held by Fabio Fava , lecturer at Bologna University, Director of the Interdepartmental Centre Alma Mater Institute on Healthy Planet and Scientific Coordinator of the National Coordination Group for Bioeconomy at the Council of Ministers' Presidency, as well as Chairman of the Ecomondo Scientific Committee, Cecilia Manget, Head of Foodservice Europe for the NPD Group, a leading international company in out-of-home market analysis, and Daniele Fattibene, researcher at the Institute of International Affairs.

The NPD Group's team of experts will be exploring perspectives on the future and trends of the foodservice industry in global markets: Jochen Pinsker, Industry Advisor Foodservice Europe will be presenting the drivers of post-pandemic recovery in the main European countries with a focus on the importance of loyalty in the foodservice world, while Felica Ke, Director of China Foodservice, will be illustrating the scenario of the out-of-home industry in China, the first country to be affected by Covid, and in Asian markets. Speakers will also include David Portalatin, Industry Advisor US for The NPD Group, who will focus on the North American market, and Matteo Figura , Director of Foodservice Italy, who will discuss the main changes in out-of-home consumption in Italy and the expected growth prospects for 2022.

Recruiting qualified personnel, one of the supply and demand difficulties for gelato and pastry shops, will be dealt with by FIPE – Italian Federation of Public Establishments. AIBI will be presenting a preview of the research carried out with Cerved on successes and new trends in bakery in Italy. Gruppo Lievito Assitol will be focusing on circularity and sustainability with yeast being one of its main examples in the food sector. More economy, particularly in regard to investments in support of digital in the supply chains involved in the PNRR, will be discussed by Sistema Gelato and Simest. Consumer choices in the out-of-home sector will also be back with Trade Lab and since the new post-pandemic approach is also affecting the retail segment, Poli.design will explore the new customer experience frontier and the point-of-sale evolution. Ethical sustainability of supply chains will once again be addressed with IILA - Italo-Latin American Institute and IULM University talking about cocoa and chocolate between Mexico and Europe.

Also featuring at "Vision Plaza" will be AMPI-Academy of Italian Master Pastry Chefs, which will talk about the importance of communication and social media in contemporary pastry-making, and Slow Food, which will be presenting the Slow Food Coffee Coalition, an open and collaborative network that unites all those participants involved in the coffee supply chain. The specialised media will be exploring supply chain trends at Sigep: Pasticceria Internazionale will deal with the issue of optimising operational aspects throughout the entire supply chain, from the workshop to the patisserie and beyond; Punto. IT will be presenting the "Artigianale, Italiano, Sostenibile" (Artisan, Italian, Sustainable) advertising campaign, created in 2021 in support of artisan gelato and gelato makers; Dolcegiornale will address the theme of sustainability in pastry and gelato making, including advice for those starting from scratch and witness accounts from those who have already embarked upon this path; Dolcesalato will take an in-depth look into the problem of recruitment; Italian Gourmet will discuss artisan pastry communication on social networks.

The events will also be held in live streaming and be available on demand. A detailed and constantly updated programme is available on the website.