Food expo ends in sour taste

The five-day Food Expo ended yesterday with 50,000 visitors more than last year following a resumption of tasting, but some vendors said sales dropped by up to 45 percent compared to last year.

Shoppers found prices at the expo, held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from Thursday to

6 pm yesterday, to be unattractive amid a turnout of nearly 480,000 people, 50,000 more than last year.

"This year's Food Expo and the concurrent events have been truly exciting and bustling, with the number of visitors and exhibitors' sales showing positive signs, underlining strong public demand and appetite for food shopping," said Sophia Chong Suk-fan, deputy executive director of expo organizer Hong Kong Trade Development Council,.

"The two trade fairs, including the rebranded Food Expo PRO and concurrent Hong Kong International Tea Fair, were well supported by group pavilions and exhibitors from a vast spectrum of countries and regions.

"We are pleased to see that the five events have successfully created business opportunities for exhibitors and the public, who were truly satisfied," she said.

Many citizens seized their last opportunity to visit the expo armed with shopping carts, looking to take advantage of clearance sales offered by stall operators.

Many exhibitors offered 20 percent discounts, while others came up with a "buy six, get six free" deal or half price in an attempt to clear their inventory at the expo.

Ruby Cheung Wuk, a salesman at Taiwan manufacturer Chen Yun Pao Chuan, said people wanted to get cheaper products nowadays than in the past, when they would buy more and opted for higher-priced items.

Cheung said that this year's expo was somewhat inconvenient, citing her friends' fears of difficulties purchasing entrance tickets and commuting resulting in their not attending.

However, she said, there was a noticeable increase in attendance on Saturday when the MTR offered a half-price discount.

"We will continue to participate in the expo next year and hope that the organizers will take reference from exhibitions held in Japan, implementing crowd-control measures such as limiting the number of people inside the venue," said Katrina Lam, saleswoman at wine company Bethlehem Holding.

"This would allow people to have more time to browse and select products, while exhibitors can have more opportunities to acquaint customers with their products."

A couple, the Huis, specifically came on the last day, spending two hours to stock up on HK$3,000 worth of frozen seafood and health supplements.

They said this year's offers were not particularly attractive, as the prices were similar to those found in supermarkets, but made the purchases as they mainly bought into the festive atmosphere.

Another visitor Mak Man-yi said: "The exhibition mainly sells products that we can buy at outside outlets, and the prices are not cheaper than outside."