subscribe to news Prodexpo 2021 discussed the food market trends at Expocentre Fairgrounds

The accompanying programme of the Prodexpo 2021 international exhibition, opened at Expocentre Fairgrounds, has started with a plenary session. The main topic is “Trends of the Food and Beverage Market 2021. How has the pandemic changed the market, and what can we do about it?” The event is organised by the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, EXPOCENTRE AO, Roskachestvo and RBC.

The plenary session was moderated by RBC TV presenter Andrey Levchenko. The discussion was opened by Nikita Kuznetsov, Director of the Department for the Development of Domestic Trade of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade. In his speech he summed up last year's results and made forecasts for the industry's development in 2021. "The pandemic dealt a serious blow to small business, but the online retail segment has grown significantly," stated Nikita Kuznetsov. Regarding the position of the Ministry of Industry and Trade on price regulation, the speaker noted that his agency was not in favour of state regulation of food prices.

Sergey Mitin, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Agriculture and Food Policy and Environmental Management, drew attention to the pricing structure in the food sector, stressing that energy costs and trade margins were the most significant in this. He also reviewed the pros and cons of the introduced product labelling and voiced the new laws that had been adopted recently. "An almost revolutionary law on viticulture and winemaking has been adopted, which gives domestic winemakers the opportunity to position themselves in a more stable way," the senator said.

The preliminary results of the "unprecedented in depth and scale research" were reported by Head of Roskachestvo Maxim Protasov. Speaking about the quality of food products, he noted that "of all the goods we studied, about 20% have any violations". Further, the expert highlighted four key trends for 2021: demand for natural, fresh products, omnichannel, conscious consumption and expectation of state support from consumers. The speaker concluded his speech by describing the new consumer protection centre to be launched on the basis of Roskachestvo. "It is very important for us that a smart consumer influences the market, moves the market and changes the market," Maxim Protasov summed up.

The plenary session was continued by Maksim Fateev, Vice-President of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Welcoming the participants, he underlined the importance of Prodexpo, which, he said, hosted all significant industry events and activities. The speaker told about the activities of the territorial chambers of commerce and industry during the pandemic, which, he said, "have practically turned into headquarters to assist and support local businesses".

The plenary session was also addressed by Sergey Belyakov, Chairman of the Presidium of the Retail Companies Association, Dmitry Vostrikov, Executive Director of Rusprodsoyuz, and Vera Shtokailo, General Director of the Industry Development Centre of the Leningrad Region.

Press Service, EXPOCENTRE AO