Food & Drink Expo will have a strong line up of international exhibitors, providing buyers with an unrivalled opportunity to seek out fresh ideas International participants ­ many of them appearing within dedicated country pavilions in Expo's Retail Fair ­ will be coming from Sweden, Germany, Belgium, Holland, France, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Tunisia, Italy and Malaysia. Closer to home, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland are also taking country pavilions to display the products of smaller specialist producers. So what should you look out for? In the Netherlands Pavilion, Ferndew is featuring its Delight range of low calorie, sugar free frozen desserts that include ice cream, mousses and gateaux, as well as frozen vegetarian meals, soups, oriental dishes and sauces. Belgium's participants include Belgaufre with waffles, Bruyerre with Belgian chocolates, Croc'In with hot and cold pastries, and organic bottle-conditioned beer from Brasserie Dupont. Food from Sweden is introducing a long Swedish style bar at which buyers can relax and sample all the products on display. These will include Aqua of Sweden's energy drink Aqua Energy Activator which combines co-enzyme Q10, vitamin E and oxygen through a patented process. Garbo Foods is exhibiting speciality Swedish breads, Scan Foods will be sampling its traditional meatballs, and Touch of Sweden will feature its Estrella crips in three flavours. Other participants include Kopparberg, Sweden's leading cider brewer, and Direkt Chark, a speciality meat supplier. Under the auspices of marketing board CMA, Germany is bringing 22 exhibitors to the show, nine of them newcomers, who will be launching more than 40 new products. These include Germany's leading yogurt producer Ehrmann which has recently made its UK debut, premium fruit juice supplier Dan International, and sausage, sauces and toppings manufacturer Saarlander which is launching a retail bockwurst pack at the show. Other exhibitors include Fiorucci with Stockmeyer meat products and snacks, HT Webb which supplies a wide variety of German cheeses, and ND Drinks (UK), formerly Immergut, which is featuring its Drinkfit yogurt drinks along with its new Drive flavoured yogurt drink range. A special feature of the German Pavilion will be an organic shop' displaying the country's organic products available in the UK. CMA's UK director Kurt Bettin says Germany's organic market is well developed and accounts for nearly a third of all organic European meat and dairy product sales and a fifth of all the country's vegetable sales. In the Scottish pavilion the 18 exhibiting companies will be aiming to exceed the £3m sales generated by their participation in the last expo in 1998. First-time participant Yeung's Chinese Foods has high expectations of the event, and is aiming to target buyers with its range of Chinese speciality foods. Returning to the show for the fifth time is Orkney Herring Co with a new marinated salmon with raspberry and champagne sauce, and marinated salmon with honey mustard. Other Orkney companies will be showing ice cream, meat, and salmon. Inverawe Smokehouses will be looking for more outlets for its traditional oak smoked Scottish fish and game, while Castle MacLellan Foods will be offering visitors the chance to sample its new range of fresh seafood soups which have a 21 day chill life. Well Pickled is to feature its award winning marmalade, and Esk Frozen Foods, which claims to the only Scottish producer of IQF vegetables and fruit, will be presenting its range. In the Northern Ireland Pavilion, WD Irwin & Sons is featuring its traditional hand crafted breads and cakes, while on the Fane Valley stand, visitors will find Whites Speedicook quality oats which the company claims dominates the country's £3m hot cereal sector. Its microwaveable honey nut flavoured porridge which won a Tesco food award last year will be featured. Other international exhibitors showcasing products throughout the expo's four fairs include the Joint Arab Food Co and Middle East Foods & Beverages from Egypt, Malaysia's An Ql Chocolate & Candy Industries, Italy's Alimentare Brone and Spain's Green Farm Nuts. {{FOCUS SPECIALS }}

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