With a series of food industry expos and conferences in the pipeline, we’ve been devoting a lot of time to forging new bonds with clients, suppliers, category buyers and food technology specialists. And naturally, of course, we’ve also been using the same events to renew old acquaintances.

On 13 April, our chair Mike Wilson and managing director Shiraz Master visited the 2026 Food and Drink Expo at the NEC in Birmingham. The event was well attended and featured an array of potential suppliers with interesting new solutions for manufacturing, packaging, energy-saving and more.

Soon afterwards, on 29 April we attended the Tesco Business Update event at Alexandra Palace in London. Here, senior leaders shared some of their plans for growth and for developing Tesco’s stakeholder partnerships. It provided some valuable insights but it was also a useful networking opportunity; a chance to see how other manufacturers are dealing with the challenges of innovation, cost control and net zero.

Next on our calendar will be PLMA’s World of Private Label exhibition, which will be held on the 19 and 20 May at RAI Amsterdam. The event is designed to help build connections between retailers and food manufacturers operating in categories including ambient, fresh, frozen, and dry foods. After that, we’ll be visiting another industry trade show: SIAL Paris, which will run from 17 to 21 October. It’s expected to attract around 8,000 exhibitors from more than 130 countries.

“We’ve become very much an international business,” said Mike Wilson, “so it makes complete sense for us to attend UK and international trade shows to build and strengthen our networks. Last year, we visited shows in the Gulf States, Turkey and Germany, amongst others, and we’ve always found it to be worthwhile. Retailers’ demands change all the time and there’s no better way of keeping pace than to visit these events and examine the latest solutions for ourselves.”