With an exhibition area of more than 8,000 square meters, the 4th iFresh Shanghai Fru&Veg Expo (Spring Exhibition) is set to be held at the Shanghai International Exhibition Center (INTEX) from June 12-14. Organized by iFresh Information Ltd, this year's event is expected to attracting more than 300 exhibitors and visitors, including representatives from supermarket chains, wholesalers, distributors and importers. At www.freshfruitportal.com, we speak with iFresh Information Ltd's program director Zhu Yongli about what will be in store.

Zhu observes an industry-wide trend of transformation and upgrading is taking place in China's traditional produce market.

"New phenomena, such as rural land circulation, agricultural branding and fresh produce e-commerce have been sprouting across the country, and new solutions to cold chain logistics and the O2O [Online2Offline] business model have quickly emerged," Zhu tells www.freshfruitportal.com.

"Even evolving challenges like food security issues have been on the rise. All these factors will bring new opportunities for change to the whole produce industry."

He believes the key to survival and success amidst such changes is information, which can help firms significantly by avoiding loopholes and detours on the path to becoming winners out of this industrial transformation.

"Collecting important information is key to gaining a competitive position in this era teemed with rapid changes. But just how exactly can we obtain that useful informaiton? In my view, the best approach is to interact with other actors in this industry, both online and offline," Zhu says.

"And this is what iFresh Information Ltd has been striving to achieve: matching online information with real-life interaction by building the largest platform for direct produce sales in China. This is iFresh's mission."

As the Chinese representative of French website Fructidor.com, an international online produce platform, Zhu believes annual events like this bring positive momentum to the growth of his country's fruit and vegetable industry.

"We focus on the consumer market in china, especial the first tier and second tier cities, such as Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Xi'an, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Nanjing, Nanchang, Shenyang and Changsha," he says

"We offer an opportunity for importers and retailors to update each other directly on the market as well as promoting branding images.

"And this is what sets the iFresh Fru & Veg Expo apart from the Asia Fruit Logistica in Hong kong, and the Berlin Fruit Logistica."

Speaking of this year's new elements for the expo, Zhu highlights diversity, practicality and professionalism.

"The iFresh 2014 Spring Exhibition managed to take in producers and produce associations from countries like America, Peru, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Holland, Italy, Israel, Uganda and Taiwan," Zhu says.

"There’s also been breakthrough in getting quality domestic produce products on board as well as expanding the variety of product categories. In addition, we will showcase the most cutting-edge technologies from specialized firm in produce packaging, cold storage, cold chain logistics and origin tracking.

"The scope of the showcase covered the entire value chain, which allows us to take a three-dimensional approach to providing package solutions to problems ranging from cultivation to circulation."

Zhu adds that the reverse rurchase Fair, which is to be held simultaneously, is an innovative trade communion model that brings together purchasing agents from more than 120 high-quality produce buyers, including supermarket chains, e-commerce sites, distributors and food service chains, as well as from the  juice and processed produce industry.

"The agents will be seated in a conference room, and their lists of procurement requirements will be released beforehand. The suppliers then try to actively meet the requirements as listed. This new solution can effectively help buyers to improve the efficiency and save transaction costs significantly," Zhu says.

Another concurrent event is the marketing summit on June 13, that will come in the form of a panel discussion with keynote speeches on industry-related themes.

iFresh Information Ltd program director Zhu Yongli

Zhu tells www.freshfruitportal.com the conference will also bring together industry giants such as Lenovo's Joyvio, Zespri, Tony's Farm and Panpingguo will share information on business models and strategic planning in relation to branding and marketing.

In addition, representatives from Metromall, Bgyshop.com, FruitDay.com and other retailers will make presentations.

"If you are a producer and a distributor, you can maximize your profit by talking face-to-face with the retailers or first or second tier wholesalers.

"On the other hand, if you are an importer, you are offered a chance to sustain and expand your end distribution channels by meeting with international producers, without having to even step out of the country.

"If you are an end retailer, there are a lot of opportunities for you: not only can you find the best supplier at the lowest cost, you can also enrich your product variety and find the ancillary suppliers who can solve your "last-mile" problems. In short, by participating in this event, you will have the chance to bring down your overall operational cost significantly."

Shanghai: on the rise to national prominence

The iFresh Spring Exhibition has previously been held in Guangzhou and Beijing, but beginning in 2013, the location was moved to Shanghai. Zhu says Shanghai holds a unique geographical and economic advantage over other cities, and is one of the most developed regions in China and the driver of Yangtze-River Delta economy.

"Shanghai leads the country in the overall level of consumption of the local population. Moreover, the volume of produce imports through Shanghai customs has been continually increasing at 30% for eight years, with the data for 2014 expected to rise further. Facts like this demonstrate Shanghai's projection of economic prowess in the Eastern China and Central China regions," he says.

In the meantime, the establishment of the Shanghai Free Trade Zone carries significant meaning to produce imports.

"The Free Trade Zone allows more unlicensed foreign products to be showcase in China, which facilitates the preparatory process before their formal introduction into the Chinese market. It speeds up the customs clearances procedures for regular products to the greatest extent while reducing the overall transactional cost," Zhu says.

Increasingly, large produce importers and exporters have moved their offices from Guangzhou to Shanghai. Just a few years ago, most first tier retailers begin their goods distribution process in Guangzhou customs; now they are setting up Shanghai as the gateway into the Chinese market.

"Therefore, what the industry players have in consensus is that, with highways, railways, air routes and river shipments all in place, Shanghai's produce import and export volumes are destined to lead the industry on the national level in a matter of few years.

"There's tremendous prospects for market growth, and this will further fuel the growth of produce market in inland areas. And this is exactly why we have chosen Shanghai as the location for iFresh Expo."

Based on the different seasons for different produce products, the iFresh Fru & Veg Expo consists of a Spring Exhibition (June) and a Fall Exhibition (December) each year.

www.freshfruitportal.com