expoSE & expoDirekt : stability confirms specialisation
The stable number of visitors reflects the concentration of the sector and the important need for information on new developments and innovations.
The 28th edition of the expoSE – the trade fair for asparagus and berry production in Europe – and the 13th expoDirekt – trade fair for direct sales – which took place at the Messe Karlsruhe welcomed more than 5,200 trade visitors on 20th and 21st November. Of the 440 exhibitors, almost 16% were participating in the trade fairs for the first time. «The overall mood of the trade fair duo was more confident than a year ago, and the exhibitors surveyed at random indicated that the number of investment projects would increase again,» says Simon Schumacher, organiser of the expoSE and expoDirekt trade fairs. 84% are convinced by the salon duo and will come back.
Three innovation awards for asparagus and strawberries
«The stable but slightly lower number of visitors reflects the concentration of the sector as well as the ever important need for information on new developments and innovations, as well as the interest in professional exchanges observed for the popularity of specialized forums,» says the manager. Three innovation awards were presented for each trade fair: expoSE and expoDirekt. The expoSE Innovation Awards went to 4Disc from Dortmund for its InterCut for ultra-flat tillage between asparagus rows, to Harlander Landtechnik for its asparagus mound rotavator with hydraulic service hatch and to Hexafarms from Berlin for its intelligent yield forecasting system for strawberries and berries under tunnel. The expoDirekt innovation awards went to two cooperating companies, getpacked and Click & Collect Service for getpacked & collect – which enables online shopping with collection of products from vending machines, to Pflanzentheke from Lorsch for their smart vertical farm system for direct marketing and to Schwab Automaten (Packmatisch) from Munich for the HofKiosk, the vending machine with product tray system. The next trade fair duo expoSE & expoDirekt as well as the four forums (see box) will take place from 19 to 20 November 2025 at Messe Karlsruhe.
Photos and videos are available: www.expo-se.de/en/press-impressions-videos-photos-videos
Success for 4 specialist forums
The 35th Asparagus Day attracted a large number of visitors, with the focus squarely on technical topics such as replanting, the resurgence of the asparagus fly, the viability of asparagus growing and the possibilities for reducing the use of phytosanitary products in asparagus cultivation. It also afforded an overview of the cultivation and marketing of green asparagus in southern Spain and provided current information about the world of asparagus.
The forum on berry techniques recorded a good turnout for its 2nd edition, with nearly 80 participants. The forum addressed the importance of data-driven crop management for better plant growth and energy savings, as well as more reliable harvest forecasts for better planning of strawberry harvests by robots. These technical elements should also facilitate the transition from soil cultivation to trough cultivation as well as making irrigation easier.
The direct sales forum, organised by the trade magazine HOFdirekt and the VSSE, worked perfectly with topics on “Smart Shopping” and “The farm shop as a brand”.
