The fair is a B2B exhibition where vendors in the food and hospitality industry showcase their products and innovations

There are many reasons for businesses participating in Aahar 2022 to celebrate. The first and foremost is, of course, the fact that the fair, in which vendors for the food and hospitality industry exhibit their products, has finally been conducted. The second wave of the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing chaos had caused Aahar 2021 to get cancelled.  

The last time Aahar was conducted was in the beginning of March 2020, just days before the coronavirus pandemic turned the world as we knew it upside down. It was even worse for the exhibitors who had come in hopes of getting business and purchasers, but were instead propelled into a future where the travel and, consequently, the hospitality industries were brought to a halt.  

Aahar which took off on April 26, ends today. 

Now, it seems that the travel sector is about to return to its pre-pandemic normal to some extent, especially now that India has resumed regular international flights. With that, the industry is not only looking to pent-up demand from domestic travellers, but from international ones as well. The event being conducted physically gave hope to the vendors that they would once again be able to see bright days for their businesses in the near future. It also allowed them to showcase the innovation they undertook and busied themselves with in the past two years.  

Professional kitchen equipment supplier Rational felt elated at being able to present its products. “We are able to finally display our newest products with our chefs conducting live demonstrations to showcase the features our products offer. We have a lot of customers, but there might still be some features they might not be aware of. We are now able to showcase all of them here for our existing and potential customers, while also having them try out the food we are making,” said Saurabh Puri, Director Marketing Communication Asia, Rational AG. 

A more resounding reason for the buzz was the show of visitors. While the first half of the first day was tumultuous, the businesses saw interest picking up in the second half. This, for them, meant that stakeholders from the hospitality industry were visiting the fair to scout for potential future partners. “Day 2 witnessed heavy footfall. Day 1 had loads of people too but it was slightly mismanaged. However, we had loads of them coming to us and showing interest in our products. It was a really great day,” said Germain Araud, Managing Director of Monin India, which develops syrups, gourmet sauces and tea fruits or vegetable mix preparations among others for the F&B industry.  

Vikram Goel, Managing Director India of commercial ovens supplier Unox India, said, “We have had busy few months preparing for this exhibition. We wanted to make the best of it. We created tasting booths on both sides of our exhibit. It’s such a relief to see that everything going so well and that the footfall is not hampered by what the industry witnessed over the past two years.” 

The relief of being able to meet clients physically after not getting the chance to harness this professional connection in the way they knew best was palpable in the air. It felt as though even the visitors were encased in this enthusiasm as they bustled from one stall to another, trying to make the best of the opportunity. However, neither of these was the biggest reason for the uplifting atmosphere. 

What made the venue jubilant was the fact that despite the initial Omicron scare, the hospitality industry witnessed a much better year so far than it had since 2020, promising signs of recovery. Till mid-February, the third wave of the pandemic was a cause of tension but gradually everything returned to normal. For the hospitality industry, though, nothing was merely normal. It was better than they had expected after having written FY22 down as another disappointing year.  

“The target we had set for FY22 was nowhere near close in the first three quarters of the financial year. However, unexpectedly, in the last quarter, things not only returned to normal, but we also witnessed a boom that actually made us meet our targets,” said Santhosh Stephen, Managing Director, Symega, manufacturer and marketer of natural colours, flavours and savoury blends to food and beverage industries worldwide.  

Araud expressed a similar trajectory for his products. “Our targets for last year were matched due to a surge in the last quarter. In fact, this year, we have doubled our targets, and things seem well on their way for us to be able to meet them,” he said. 

If anyone was wondering before whether Aahar would be up to the mark this year or not, the image of people everywhere, on weekdays and amid a sweltering heatwave no less, would probably be enough an answer to quell their doubts. However, visitors were enjoying themselves, actively engaging with the exhibitors and trying to gather as much information as possible that indicates resounding success for the industry, which is now in better spirits than ever as it looks forward to what seems to be a promising year.