The 11th ZOOTECHNIA International Fair for Livestock and Poultry, held from 31 January to 3 February 2019 at Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, is expected to be larger than ever. It should be noted that increased demand for participation in the fair led to the coverage of two additional pavilions compared to the previous event, spearheaded by animal feed and mechanical equipment.

The 11th ZOOTECHNIA will serve as the epicentre of all the latest developments in the livestock – poultry industry of Greece, the Balkans and South-Eastern Europe. In fact, industry leaders from Greece and abroad have already booked their participation in the event, and there is great interest on the part of trade visitors from all over Greece and hosted buyers from countries in the broader region.

ZOOTECHNIA will also feature the well-established Pet Festival and the ‘Horse Show’.

ZOOTECHNIA will be accompanied by a rich schedule of side events. These include an event jointly organised by TIF-Helexpo and the Animal Husbandry Laboratory of the School of Veterinary Medicine of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, where the latest innovations in the construction of stable facilities, animal nutrition and use of new technologies for the management of livestock holdings will be presented through demonstrations, in cooperation with related productive enterprises. Additionally, from 1 to 3 February, TIF-Helexpo and ‘Meat News’ magazine are jointly

organising the Pan-Hellenic Congress titled ‘Meat and Meat Products – From the Stable to the Plate’.

Finally, another congress will be held during the 11th ZOOTECHNIA titled ‘The application of circular economy on agriculture and livestock farming’, to be jointly organised by TIF-Helexpo and Success Consulting & Financing.

07/12/2018 – 14:58

The 3rd Art Thessaloniki International Contemporary Art Fair, held from 22 to 25 November in Pavilions 9 and 10 of Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, achieved an 18% increase in visitor numbers compared to last year’s event.

The main reasons for which this year’s Art Thessaloniki stood out in terms of quality and quantity were the upgraded presence of galleries from Greece and abroad, as well as the attendance of numerous pupils and students during every day of the Fair.

Apart from art lovers from all over Greece and neighbouring countries, Art Thessaloniki also welcomed over 700 pupils of lower and upper secondary schools of Thessaloniki and other areas of Northern Greece, as well as fine arts students.

Collectors of artworks from Greece and abroad also visited the 3rd Art Thessaloniki and made purchases.

The charity auction of art works to support the Nea Michaniona Health Centre, with a token starting price of 100 euros, was a tremendous success. All 48 works on auction were sold for far more than the starting price.

Compared to the previous events, the 3rd Art Thessaloniki focused much more on a three-pronged approach: investing in art works, providing information on art and entertaining visitors.

In this context, art lovers flocked to all the side events of the Fair, which brought 28 galleries from Greece and abroad representing over 450 artists through 1,500 art works to Thessaloniki.

Art Thessaloniki included 5 museum exhibitions and over 20 simultaneous projects, while the Honoured Artist was the internationally renowned sculptor Takis.

Art Thessaloniki was jointly organised by TIF-Helexpo and the Artistic Director of the event, Mr Pantelis Tsatsis.

The sponsors of the 3rd Art Thessaloniki Fair were the companies Cosmote, Karavias, Kyfonidis (Catering sponsor), Zythos-Dore (Catering sponsor), while gratitude is extended to the City of Thessaloniki and the Thessaloniki Tourism Organisation.

28/11/2018 – 15:41

This year, important galleries from Greece and abroad are participating in the Fair, while India, the Honoured Country at the 84th TIF, will also be present.

In the context of the side events of the 3rd Art Thessaloniki, museum exhibitions will be held, featuring works by Alekos Fasianos and Pavlos from the collection of Giannis Angelopoulos, as well as works by the American artist Sol LeWitt from the collection of Efi Piplikatsi-Andreadou.

This year’s Fair will hold a number of surprises for art lovers. One such surprise is the charity auction of art works, to be held on 23 November, in order to support the Nea Michaniona Health Centre, with a token starting price of 100 euros. The ‘Art Walk’ project will also be held during the 3rd Art Thessaloniki, sponsored by the Thessaloniki Tourism Organisation,

in the context of which 20 paintings have been placed at prominent store fronts in the city centre. One tour has already taken place and another, open to the public, will be held on Saturday, 17 November.

On Friday, 23 November, starting at 09:30 am, pupils from Secondary Schools from all over Northern Greece will visit Art Thessaloniki, escorted by special tour guides.

“This year’s event vindicates our partnership with Pantelis Tsatsis”, stated the President of TIF-Helexpo, Mr Tasos Tzikas, during today’s Press Conference in view of the opening of Art Thessaloniki, stressing that the participation of the national exhibition agency in the event demonstrates its historical interest in culture and the visual arts in particular.

In turn, the CEO of TIF-Helexpo, Mr Kyriakos Pozrikidis, remarked that Art Thessaloniki is a joint investment by the company and Mr Tsatsis, and invited the public to visit and further strengthen its third incarnation, which is crucial for its success.

“We are ready to face the challenge at every level and see Art Thessaloniki established as the top artistic event in South-Eastern Europe”, stated the Artistic Director of the event, Mr Pantelis Tsatsis. According to Mr Tsatsis, the slogan of this year’s Fair is ‘Investment – Information – Recreation’.

The Deputy General Director of TIF-Helexpo, Mr Alexis Tsaxirlis, also stressed the importance of this year’s event, adding that a new plan will be necessary in order for the Fair to become even more dynamic and effective in the future.

Rich schedule of events

The schedule of events – both precursor events and those to be held during the Fair – of the 3rd Art Thessaloniki also include:

-The project Group Exhibition: ‘I Fell Asleep on the Backseat’, a group exhibition by the artists Miltos Digkas, Akis Giousmis, Filippos Tatakis, Nikoleta Aggelidou and Vasilis Georgoulas,

curated by Aris Stoidis. The exhibition is open every day at the Open Art Lab of TIF-Helexpo, from 5 to 16 November.

– Homage to Lafcadio Hearn (Yakumo Koizumi).

– On Friday, 23 November, at 18:00, at the presentation area of Pavilion 9, Dr Yannis Fikas, Professor of Philosophy at New York College, will give a speech titled ‘Symbolic Elements in the Works of Lafcadio Hearn’. Lafcadio Hearn, who was of Irish-Greek descent and is better known by his Japanese name, Yakumo Koizumi, was one of the most important Japanese writers, best known for his collections of Japanese legends and ghost stories.

– Earlier, at 17:00, in Pavilion 9, artist Vena Naskrecka will stage a performance on women’s hairstyles and their importance in Japanese culture, inspired by the stories of Lafcadio Hearn (Yakumo Koizumi). Following this performance, artist Maria Kompatsari will recount short stories by Lafcadio Hearn at the same venue. The storytelling performance will be repeated at the same venue on Saturday, 24 November and Sunday, 25 November at 12:00.

– On Saturday, 24 November, at 16:30, Mr Manos Stefanidis, an art historian and professor at the University of Athens, will give a tour of the galleries and museum exhibitions to visitors.

– On the same day, at 18:00, Mr Manos Stefanidis will give a lecture at the special presentation area on the life and work of renowned painter Vincent van Gogh.

– On Wednesday, 14 November, at 20:00, in cooperation with the Thessaloniki Film Festival, the film ‘Renoir’ by Gilles Bourdos will be screened at ‘Olympion’ Cinema on Aristotelous Square.

– On Thursday, 22 November, at 17:00, the youth music group ‘Percussionistas’ will perform using instruments made of recyclable materials. After the end of their performance on Fair premises, they will hold a musical walk throughout the central streets of the city.

– On the same day, at 19:00, internationally renowned tenor Filippos Modinos will sing popular arias from much-loved operas.

– On Friday, 23 November, at 19:00, the duet ‘Duo con senso della Musica’ (Letti Pappa on piano and Nikos Bacharidis on trumpet) will take us on a journey full of blues and tango music.

– On Saturday, 24 November, at 19:00, the youth string ensemble ‘Spira Minore’ will perform a repertoire consisting of classical works.

– On the same day, at 21:00, ‘Alma Kalma’, the International Research Laboratory of Performing Arts, will present the PIETA project, inspired by Sylvia Plath’s poem ‘Winter Trees’. The performance addresses the term ‘deposition’ through a spiritual sculptural approach, at times inspired from Michelangelo’s Pietà and at times producing abstract forms.

– The events of Saturday will end with a dance music party featuring the internationally renowned DJ Dest.

– On Sunday, 25 November, 19:00, the music group ‘Passa Tempo’ (Alexandros Kallifatidis, Giannis Poimenidis, Nakis Petropoulos and Odysseas Empeirikos) will perform swing and rock’n’roll music.

– Every day of the Fair, the 40-minute film ‘Theodoros Stamos – The Irascible of Color’, an idea of Takis Efstathiou realised by director Giannis Katomeris, and the video titled ‘In the Age of the 3D Reproduction’ by Babis Venetopoulos, will be screened at the presentation hall.

– Pavilion 10 will house a construct named ‘Egg Installation’, consisting of 42 works by renowned artists.

The sponsors of the 3rd Art Thessaloniki Fair are the companies Cosmote, Karavias, Kyfonidis (Catering sponsor), Zythos-Dore (Catering sponsor), while gratitude is extended to the City of Thessaloniki and the Thessaloniki Tourism Organisation.

There will be free parking for visitors entering the premises from the Trade Gate.

26/11/2018 – 12:43

The most important tourism exhibition ‘duo’ of the country, Philoxenia – Hotelia, held from 9 to 11 November at Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, was marked by a 16% increase in visitor numbers and a particularly boosted interest by tourism professionals, as there was a 36% increase in the number of trade visitors over last year. This year, the number of Greek trade visitors was increased by 38% and that of foreign trade visitors by 21%.

The two exhibitions were at the centre of the tourism-hotel industry, hosting 615 exhibitors from 22 countries and visitors from 47 countries and serving as a driving force for new partnerships and commercial agreements through the 4,000 business meetings held between exhibitors and the 200 hosted buyers from various countries.

With an enhanced international character, this year’s Philoxenia once again served as a ‘barometer’ for the upcoming season. Its International Conference highlighted a major issue that can have a catalytic effect on extending the tourism period: tourism for travellers over the age of 55. The conference, which was jointly organised by TIF-Helexpo and the Hellenic Federation of Hoteliers, with the support of the European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (FEG) and the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ΕΝΑΤ), attracted great interest and was held at ‘Nikolaos Germanos’ Congress Centre, with all its sessions completely sold out.

There was considerable visitor attendance and exhibitor participation in ‘All About Café’ (The Workshops and The Cup Tasting Spot) and ‘All About Gastronomy’, the thematic sections of Hotelia, while the Latte Art Throwdown Competition, where acclaimed baristas demonstrated their skills, left a tremendous impression. Konstantinos Katsanos won first place and Emmanouil Sachtaridis won second place at the competition. The ‘All About Café’ section has become an institution and celebration of coffee, with numerous exhibitors participating every year.

A major attraction at this year’s Hotelia was ‘DPOINT SPACES’, an innovative hotel architecture and decoration event that has become an institution and featured the ‘Easy Hospitality Project’ and the ‘Glamping Concept’, a new tourism trend.

The sponsors of the Hosted Buyers programme were Zorpidis (Transport Sponsor), Prima Holidays, Grand Hotel Palace, Hyatt, Capsis Hotel and Plaisir. The sponsor of ‘All About Café’ was MEVGAL.

The Hospitality Sponsor of the Philoxenia Conference was FRAPORT GREECE, the Air Transport Sponsor was ΕLLINAIR, the Coffee Break Sponsor was Catering Samiotakis, the Transport Sponsor was Taxi Mercedes Club, and the Grand Communication Sponsor was AMNA / PRAKTORIO 104.9 FM.

26/11/2018 – 12:26

With a considerable increase of over 70% in the number of trade visitors compared to last year’s event, the 33rd ‘KOSMIMA’ International Exhibition for Jewellery, Clocks and Watches, Precious Stones, Machinery and Equipment ended on 22 October.

Foreign visitors came from Bulgaria, Albania, Cyprus, Turkey, South Korea, Great Britain, Romania and Afghanistan.There were 95 direct and indirect exhibitors, including direct participations from Germany, India and Turkey, at KOSMIMA where all the latest international trends in the jewellery sector were presented.

Indian exhibitors participated in KOSMIMA in the context of the increased Indian participation in TIF-Helexpo events, which will culminate at the 84th TIF in September 2019, where India will be the Honoured Country.

It should be noted that there will also be an Indian participation at the 3rd Art Thessaloniki, to be held from 22 to 25 November at Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre.

Greek jewellery had a special place at this year’s event and was promoted not only through exhibits but also through the creation of Greek artists who participated in the 29th Pan-Hellenic Jewellery Design Competition, its subject being ‘kinetic art’. The competition, which featured 27 works by 25 students and professionals, was organised by the Pan-Hellenic Federation of Craft Silversmiths, Jewellers & Watch Sellers (POVAKO) and TIF-Helexpo.

The next major international ‘appointment’ for the jewellery industry is at the Metropolitan Expo exhibition centre in Athens from 1 to 4 March 2019 at the 32nd Hellenic Jewellery Fair, which has been renamed as ‘Athens International Jewellery Show’ and is being organised by TIF-Helexpo and POVAKO.

01/11/2018 – 12:15

This year’s KOSMIMA, where Greek creations will hold a special place, will feature glamorous items and all the latest international trends of the jewellery sector. From 20 to 22 October, the 33rd International Exhibition for Jewellery, Clocks and Watches, Precious Stones, Machinery and Equipment will serve as a meeting point for the jewellery industry in view of the winter season, with important Greek and international participants.

More specifically, 95 direct and indirect exhibitors will be participating in this year’s KOSMIMA, to be held in Pavilion 13 of Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, with direct participants from Germany, India and Turkey.

Manufacturers, workshops, designers, importers, representatives & wholesalers of jewellery, clocks and watches & precious stones, as well as companies selling silverware, packaging materials and machinery, will be participating in the 33rd KOSMIMA.

In view of KOSMIMA, the Pan-Hellenic Federation of Craft Silversmiths, Jewellers & Watch Sellers (POVAKO) and TIF-Helexpo jointly held the 29th Pan-Hellenic Jewellery Design Competition, which aims at the growth and promotion of Greek jewellery. The theme of this year’s competition was “kinetic art in jewellery”, with contestants being called upon to be inspired by movement for the creations. A total of 25 students and professionals participated in this year’s competition with 27 creations. The winners will receive their awards during KOSMIMA and visitors to the Exhibition will have the opportunity to see the award-winning works at the Exhibition.

17/10/2018 – 12:34

With internationally renowned sculptor Takis as the honoured artist and major galleries from Greece and abroad participating, the 3rd Art Thessaloniki International Contemporary Art Fair is preparing to open its doors to the public. This year’s event, which is being held for the third time and is becoming an institution, will take place between 22 November and 25 November, being held at Pavilions 8, 9 and 10 of Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre. Art Thessaloniki International Contemporary Art Fair is being organised by TIF-Helexpo and its Artistic Director, Mr Pantelis Tsatsis.

With the slogan “Circulation-Information-Entertainment”, the Fair is being held under the auspices of the Ministries of Culture, Tourism, Interior (Macedonia-Thrace), the Region of Central Macedonia and other city agencies, operating at the level of artistic expression as well as the level of commercial, cultural and economic growth.

Art Thessaloniki International Contemporary Art Fair is a ‘meeting place’ for art galleries, investing in the strategic and geographical position of Thessaloniki, its multi-cultural identity, its long history

and its strong ties with the Balkan countries, the USA, Russia, Israel and Turkey.

In the context of this year’s side events and on the occasion of the participation of the USA as the Honoured Country in this year’s 83rd Thessaloniki International Fair, exhibitions will be held featuring works by Greek-American artists from the collection of Zacharias Portalakis, works by the American artist Sol LeWitt and works from the collection of Efi Piplikatsi-Andreadou.

This year’s Fair will also include exhibitions dedicates to Design and Virtual Reality, a special exhibition concerning ‘ARTI’, the historic art journal published by Antonis Bouloutzas, an Honorary Wall consisting of an ‘egg’, a wall installation featuring works by 42 acclaimed artists, as well as numerous partnerships with cultural institutions. The Research Centre for Art and Science (KETE), Takis’ foundation, will also participate in the 3rd Art Thessaloniki International Fair.

Given its educational character, the 3rd Art Thessaloniki Fair will welcome secondary school students on Friday, 23 Nofember, from 09:30 until 15:00.

15/10/2018 – 11:21

The 83rd TIF experienced its very own “American dream”, raising the bar even higher this year as it succeeded in attracting 283,853 visitors, as compared to 263,724 last year. People of all ages embraced the Fair enthusiastically, turning it into the largest of the last 20 years.

With extroversion, entrepreneurship, and innovation as its slogans, and with the USA spearheading the event as the Honoured Country, the 83rd TIF was the main focal point for Thessaloniki and the broader region for 9 days. American business giants and their technological achievements, more than 100 Greek start-ups in the ‘Digital Greece’ theme park, dynamic Greek production – represented by 48 Chambers of Commerce and 360 member-companies – 20 international state participations, a large variety of thematic exhibitions, ranging from beauty and gastronomy to education and the automotive sector, in combination with daily concerts, cultural events, and dozens of side events, composed a multi-event that laid the groundwork for an even more enriched event next year.

The curtain of the 83rd TIF closed yesterday with the Blues Brothers, who arrived in Thessaloniki with a US air about them, carrying the audience away with their rhythm and liveliness, while they themselves were drawn in by the vibrant nature of Thessaloniki.

TIF-Helexpo has renewed its date for next September when the 84th TIF will take place, with the ‘Honoured Country’ torch passing to India.

The Fair was organised under the auspices of the Ministry of the Interior (Macedonia-Thrace). The official drink of the 83rd TIF was Coca Cola and the official car was DS Automobiles of the Gianniris company. ‘Papastratos’ industries supported the Smoke Free TIF initiative. The official Hotels of the Music Events were Capsis and Capsis Bristol, while the Association of Decorator’s of Northern Greece helped decorate Thessaloniki with stars in the colours of the USA.

24/09/2018 – 14:02

Thessaloniki is preparing to welcome the largest TIF to be held in the last 20 years. From the 8th to the 16th of September, the heart of entrepreneurship, innovation, and US tech excellence will beat in this northern Greek city. With a total of 20 official, direct state participations, as compared to 17 last year, and the USA as the honoured country, the 83rd TIF will be the most international of recent years.

Exhibition participations at this year’s event have exceeded 1,500, as compared to 1,398 last year and 556 in 2012, while 100% of the exhibition space available has been covered – in terms of both indoor and outdoor spaces – which translates to a total of 32,075 sq.m. as compared to 27,191 in 2017.

As the Honoured Country, the USA have covered the entirety of Pavilion 13 with 60 business giants and agencies. In fact, the USA are bringing to the 83rd TIF dozens of top executives from some of the largest companies in the world, such as Facebook, Google, Intel, HP, Oracle, Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, and others, while the US exhibition presence will include educational bodies as well as companies from the sectors of security, defence, pharmaceuticals, industry, etc. The arrival of Wilbur Ross, the US Secretary of Commerce, at the 83rd TIF and in Thessaloniki proves the gravity of the US presence at the Fair, while throughout its duration the Honoured Country and the exhibitors will hold dozens of side events, forums and presentations of the highest order (the full programme of the side events of the Honoured Country is available online at https://usatif2018.gr)

Apart from the USA, other participants in the 83rd TIF include Cyprus, India, Portugal, Bulgaria, Poland, Luxembourg, Indonesia, Iran, Romania, Russia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Turkey, FYROM, Bangladesh, China, Egypt and Italy.

Countries attending for the first time include Portugal as a state participation via the Portuguese Embassy as well as with businesses, Uzbekistan via the Embassy of Uzbekistan, and Bangladesh via its embassy and the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority. Other large participations include the Honoured Country of 2019, India (with 35 companies), last year’s Honoured Country, China, with 30 businesses, and Bulgaria with 14.

At the same time, this year’s Fair will welcome 130 Greek start-ups at the ‘Digital Greece’ theme park (in Pavilion 12), which will highlight another aspect of Greece, as part of an initiative by the Ministry of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Information, and TIF-Helexpo.

Greek entrepreneurship is giving its vote of confidence to TIF, as it considers the Fair a valuable tool for the promotion and achievement of commercial partnerships. Thus, businesses from all over Greece are participating in this year’s Fair under the umbrella of the Union of Hellenic Chambers. A total of 48 Chambers from all over the country, as compared to 43 last year, with 360 business (as compared to 340 last year) will be participating in the Fair through the Union of Chambers, while the Professional Chamber of Thessaloniki, the Chamber of Serres and the Chamber of Kozani will have separate exhibition participations.

The Press Conference in view of the opening of the 83rd TIF

The vision of the national exhibition body for TIF to become a major player in Southeastern Europe, a hub for a market worth hundreds of millions, was expressed in the press conference held today in view of this year’s event by the President of TIF-Helexpo, Mr Tasos Tzikas. He also underlined the importance of the presence of the USA as a great opportunity for Greek businesses.

In turn, the Deputy Minister of the Interior (Macedonia-Thrace), Ms Katerina Notopoulou, noted that the 83rd TIF will leave a unique social, entrepreneurial, economic and cultural mark, being the first TIF after Greece has left the bail-outs behind, and it will be taking

place in a city that has left its mark on the map of international interest.

TIF has improved by leaps and bounds in recent years, as the Governor of Central Macedonia Mr Apostolos Tzitzikostas noted, characterising the 83rd event as a landmark-exhibition. He also stressed that the US presence will upgrade the institution.

In turn, the Deputy Mayor for Finance of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, Ms Anna Angelidou, referred to the innovations of the 83rd TIF, specifically the institution of the honoured country, the smoke-free initiative, and the check-in available via the Fraport Greece kiosk.

Visitors to the 83rd TIF will experience something similar to the glory days of the 60s and 70s, given the technological achievements that will be presented at the US pavilion, as noted by the CEO of TIF-Helexpo, Mr Kyriakos Pozrikidis, who noted that this was the largest exhibition in the last 20 years.

Subsequently, the new Consul to Thessaloniki, Mr Gregory Pfleger, underlined that the US presence at the 83rd TIF is indicative of the extent to which the USA recognise the opportunities available in Greece, and especially Northern Greece. “The United States are here, the US are participating, they have taken an interest”, he mentioned characteristically, expressing his excitement for the US participation.

The President of the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce, Simos Anastopoulos, referred to the presence of 60 businesses from the crème-de-la-crème of US entrepreneurship at pavilion 13. He also announced that the pavilion will feature at its centre a space that will host 70 events.

The doors to a new world and a future with no cigarettes is being opened by the smoke-free initiative of the 83rd TIF, according to the Chairman and CEO of ‘Papastratos’, Mr Christos Charpantidis, who noted that the TIF is the first such major international event in Greece and Europe to be declared smoke-free.

A “city” of 10,000 people is moving at this moment and will be moving from Saturday onwards inside the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, according to the deputy General

Director of TIF-Helexpo, Mr Alexis Tsaxirlis, who made mention of the most largest event in the Balkans.

A broad field of thematic sections and events

The individual sections of the 83rd TIF cover a broad range of interests, from education, vehicles and energy to beauty, gastronomy, innovation, etc., with numerous actions and events.

As far as entertainment and recreation is concerned, the Music Events at the 83rd TIF include daily concerts by top singers of the Greek music stage (free with the ticket to the Fair). At this year’s concert’s the administration of TIF-Helexpo will pay tribute to Stavros Xarchakos, while on Sunday 16 September the audience will have the opportunity to enjoy the ‘Blues Brothers Approved Show’.

The programme also includes:

• On the 12th and 13th of September, in the framework of the 8rd TIF, ‘the Mindspark’ will be held, one of the largest marketing, creativity and innovative thought events, during two days of knowledge, inspiration, and discovery. Internationally known speakers will transport the audience of ‘the Mindspark’ to the US way of doing business. ‘The Mindspark Thessaloniki’ is being organised by Technopolis Thessaloniki and TIF-Helexpo.
• At Pavilion 17, the Hall of Games, an entertainment park addressed to all ages, is being organised for the first time in Greece.
• For the 5th year, Cheapart is welcoming art lovers and the city public, with many pieces by selected artists from 8 countries.

This year’s fair will be smoke-free and will be the first open urban island whose spaces will be free of cigarette smoke, as the use of any smoking product will be forbidden in the indoor spaces, while at the same time visitors will be encouraged to not smoke in the outdoor spaces either, but instead to use the special smoking areas.

Furthermore, any exhibitors and visitors to the 83rd TIF travelling from ‘Macedonia’ airport to Greece or abroad with any airline can easily check-in and drop off their luggage at the Fraport kiosk inside the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre.

General admission to the Fair costs 7 euros, but reduced 5-euro admission will be available on weekdays until 18:00. Tickets for families of 4 are 20 euros, tickets for large families, families with three children, and people with disabilities are 5 euros, while children under 4 enter free of charge. The weekday working hours of the Fair are 16:00 to 22:00 and on weekends 10:00 to 22:00.

The Fair is being held under the auspices of the Ministry of the Interior (Macedonia-Thrace) The official drink of the 83rd TIF is Coca Cola and the official car is DS Automobiles by the Gianniris company. ‘Papastratos’ industries support the Smoke Free TIF initiative. The official hotels of the Music Events are Capsis and Capsis Bristol. The Culture Centre of the Region of Central Macedonia is the Sponsor of the Blues Brothers. The Association of Decorators of Northern Greece helped decorate Thessaloniki with stars in the colours of the USA.

07/09/2018 – 16:05

The 4th Freskon trade show was a reference point for the fresh fruit and vegetable sector in Greece and South-Eastern Europe. It was held from 26-28 April at Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre.

The trade show recorded an overall increase in the number of visitors of 8.5% in comparison to last year’s event. It is also important that there was an increase of 22.23% in trade visitors, attending Freskon.

In fact, the increase in international trade visitors was even greater and reached 68%.

In that framework, the goal of the fair was achieved to an even greater extent, and that goal is none other than the growth of exports, the extroversion of Greek businesses of the sector and the promotion of Greek fruit.

The 4th Freskon, deployed over 11,000 sq.m., had an intensely international character at the level at the level of both exhibitors and trade visitors. Specifically, there were 210 participating exhibitors (direct and indirect) from 22 countries, among which are Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Dubai, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Egypt, India, Morocco, Israel and FYROM.

Freskon was a meeting point for producers, international retail groups, as well as domestic and international fresh fruit and vegetable transporters.

Thus, over 2,500 meetings between representatives of Greek enterprises and producers and international hosted buyers were held.

The hosted buyer programme attracted approximately 150 hosted buyers from 31 countries.

The FreshCon Market, held in the context of Freskon in cooperation with ‘Froutonea’ magazine, was a resounding success, bringing major supermarket chains into direct contact with professionals of the agricultural sector and paving the way for commercial agreements.

There was also high attendance at the 1st International Grape Congress, where acclaimed Greek and international speakers analysed the present and future of grapes on a domestic and international level.

The other side events of Freskon also attracted the interest of visitors.

It should be noted that at the completion of Freskon a collection of fruit and vegetables from the trade show was carried out and they were delivered to ‘Smile of the Child’.

03/05/2018 – 11:48