Major food exposition coming to Las Vegas next March

In front of a backdrop of the International Pizza Expo in the Las Vegas Convention Center’s Central Hall, two trade show producers on Tuesday announced they are partnering to bring a major food exposition to Las Vegas next year.

Emerald Holding Inc., which produces 10 shows annually in Las Vegas, including the Pizza Expo, the Las Vegas Antique Jewelry & Watch Show and the Sports Licensing & Tailgate Show, is teaming with Comexposium, a France-based show producer that has events in 30 countries, to bring SIAL America to the Las Vegas Convention Center March 22-24.

The show is expected to become the largest trade show for the $1.5 trillion food and beverage market.

Representatives of Emerald Expositions, Comexposium and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority gave details of the new show in a news conference Tuesday. The 2021 International Pizza Expo, postponed from March because of COVID-19 restrictions, opened its three-day run at the Convention Center on Tuesday.

SIAL, for Salon International de L’Alimentation, is a network of 10 food shows produced worldwide. SIAL America will be the first such food show produced in the United States.

SIAL is the world’s largest network of food and drink fairs, and its 10 regular shows draw 16,000 exhibitors and 700,000 visitors from 200 countries. SIAL shows include SIAL Paris, SIAL Canada Montreal, SIAL Canada Toronto, SIAL China, SIAL China South, SIAL Middle East, SIAL India, SIAL Interfood in Jakarta, Indonesia, Gourmet Selection in Paris and Djazagro in Algeria.

And next year, SIAL America in Las Vegas.

“We are excited to welcome SIAL America to Las Vegas for its inaugural show in the U.S.,” Brian Yost, chief operating officer for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, said in a release. “SIAL’s arrival reinforces Las Vegas’ position as a premiere culinary destination with world-class restaurants and dining experiences. We look forward to providing the show’s organizers, exhibitors and attendees with an experience that can only be found here.”

LVCVA President and CEO Steve Hill and representatives of Emerald and Comexposium didn’t say how many shows the partnership is committed to Las Vegas or if it could go elsewhere.

“It’s a multiple-year commitment, but we haven’t defined how many years that would be,” said Steve Corrick, CEO of Comexposium North America.

Because the show will be new, he said he doesn’t expect a massive turnout in March, possibly 5,000 attendees. But because of the broad appeal of the food market, he expects it to grow over the years.

The SIAL Paris show draws 350,000 people, Corrick said. A better determination of how many will attend will be assessed in the next six months, he said.

The SIAL America show in March will be co-located with Emerald’s International Pizza Expo and International Artisan Bakery Expo. The show is expected to include products from several food categories, including Organic & Wellness, Beverages, Grocery, Sweets & Bakery, Fruits & Vegetables, Seafood, Dairy Products, Frozen Foods, Snack Foods and Meats.

Hill said the SIAL America probably would be based in the Convention Center’s Central Hall with the Pizza Expo moving to the new West Hall area.

“We are very excited to partner with Emerald to launch SIAL America,” SIAL Network Global CEO Nicolas Trentesaux said in a release. “After establishing robust business platforms in Paris, Shanghai, Montreal and many more cities around the world, we plan to bring a new international food exhibition to life in Las Vegas to enable comprehensive sourcing of new products. We look forward to welcoming guests to share our vision, and spark new and exciting connections in the food industry.”

“This partnership underscores the ever-increasing importance of creating a single event for the food industry,” added Jessica Blue, executive vice president of Emerald. “Emerald and Comexposium share a vision of providing new opportunities for our customers to grow and innovate, which is very exciting for our industry as a whole.”

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.