COVENTRY, UK – The craft beer and spirits sector is a major focus of this year’s Food and Drink Business UK Conference taking place on the 7th November in the Ricoh Arena, Coventry with the Craft Beer and Spirits Expo and Pub and Off License Expo both taking place. The annual event will welcome 2,000 leading food industry professionals, 200 speakers and 170+ exhibitors over the one day event.
The event is a perfect opportunity for restaurateurs to sample the latest range of beers and spirits available to consumers with a recent boom in the craft beer sector alone pushing the number of breweries above 2,000 with 300 opening in the last year while 45 new distilleries opening in 2016 bring the total to 273.
The drinks industry contributes €66bn to the UK economy and employs over 40,000 people across the UK. However with the fall in sterling and the resulting increase in costs from imported ingredients and equipment the sector is under increasing pressure.
Some of the speakers lined up to discuss the growing issues in the sector at this years Craft Beer and Spirits Expo include:
- Thomas Brewer, Engineering Innovation and Transformation, AB InBev
- Paul Isherwood, Head of Technical & Quality, The SHS Group Drinks Division
- Byron Knight, Founder, Deviant & Dandy Brewery
- Martin Cullimore, Brewery Consultant, Cullibrew
- George Rowley Brand Owner La Fée LLP and MD BBH Spirits Ltd.
“This is an important event for the drinks industry in the UK. It’s taking place at a time when there is a significant amount of apprehension ahead of Brexit. Drink exports to Ireland and the rest of the EU have seen a slide in recent months but thankfully the sector is still growing. That being said, at the moment it’s not business as usual as brewers and distillers are left in limbo until we know what happens next.”
There will be 15 conferences taking place within the event including the Supply Chain & Logistics Summit, Sustainable Food & Beverage Manufacturing Summit and the Smart Factory Summit..
The Food and Drink Business UK Conference takes place as uncertainty grows within the food and drink industry as negotiations gather pace in Brussels ahead of Brexit. The food and drink industry, the UK’s largest manufacturing sector, faces a potential exodus of EU workers, a loss of £3bn in subsidies and the unwinding of over 4,500+ EU regulations and laws that govern the industry.
Attendees and Exhibitors
500 executives from the craft brewery and distillery sector will join 1,500 other attendees at this years conference from across the UK’s food industries including Managing Directors, CTO’s, Finance Directors, Marketing Directors and Operations Directors.
Attendees will also be treated to a showcase of the latest technology driving innovation in the food sector along with new products, services and the latest treats on their way to becoming stock on supermarket shelves from over 170 exhibitors.
Tickets and entry
Entry to the Food and Drink Business UK Conference is free for a limited time only. You can register at https://www.fooddrinkevent.co.uk/ using the code cilt2017.
