Chengdu to host 1st World Food Tourism Conference

World Food Tourism Conference

EUROPE ASIA GLOBAL LINK EXHIBITIONS (EAGLE) – joint-venture of Italian Exhibition Group (IEG) and VNU Exhibitions Asia – and DISCOVERYMICE form an alliance for the organization of the 1st World Conference on food tourism to be held in China, in Chengdu, from next September 5th simultaneously with the Travel Trade Market 2018 (TTM).

DISCOVERYMICE, a member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), is a leader in organizing international tourism conferences in South Korea, the Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia and Laos.

The Chengdu Conference is ready to host 100 local and international delegates at the TTM.

Theme of the event: evolution and new types of food culture in the next ten years, strategic impact in the development of gastro-tourism, importance of belonging to UNESCO Creative Cities for food culture, and traditions, heritage, food, digital and promotion of culinary tourism.

Chengdu joined the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in 2010, becoming the second UNESCO City of Gastronomy. The town is renowned as a historical city of gastronomy and birthplace of many culinary traditions.

The 1st World Food Tourism Conference is a significant step forward towards the establishment of a cooperation platform on food tourism in the Asia Pacific region. In line with the UNWTO goals, it supports tourism stakeholders and member states’ initiatives in pursuing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

“The collaboration with DISCOVERYMICE is a prominent element of the TTM. Thanks to the partner’s experience, we will add an important knowledge-sharing platform to the tradeshow and provide participants with valuable content “, said Emanuele Guido, EAGLE President and International and National Business Development of IEG.

“Considering the growth trend of food tourism, our goal is to make this platform a key moment on culinary tourism in China and throughout the Asia Pacific region. And develop similar formats on other continents to connect the industry globally “.

For Choon Loong Lee, President and Ceo of DISCOVERYMICE and UNWTO Vice President for Asia and the Pacific, “The collaboration with EAGLE, an Italian-Chinese joint venture, in the organization of the 1st World Food Tourism Conference has global significance. Italy and China have the greatest culinary dissemination in the world. This conference could transform gastronomic world tourism and it would not have been possible without the support of Italian Exhibition Group and VNU Exhibitions Asia”.