The Food Taipei 2020, which was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic, will finally be held from December 17 to 20 at Hall 1 of the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. As part of the event, there will be a “Taiwan Pavilion” organized by the Council of Agriculture (COA) in Area J of Hall 1. This year the theme of the Taiwan Pavilion will be “AgriNext Taiwan.” The COA has selected 116 top-quality domestic exhibitors to participate in what will be the largest national pavilion at the exhibition. The COA specially held a pre-show Taiwan Pavilion press conference on December 10, at which the COA not only introduced the winners of the “Top Ten of Taiwan” awards but also revealed premium quality domestically produced products that will be on display in the seven themed exhibition areas including: the TGA Select area, Excellence Agriculture Products in Taiwan zone , Premium Agricultural Products in Taiwan zone, Prepared Foods zone, Seafoods zone, Livestock and Poultry Products zone.

“Top Ten of Taiwan Products” used to demonstrate innovative Taiwan flavors

For the “Food Taipei 2020 Taiwan Pavilion Pre-Show Press Conference and Award Presentation Ceremony for the Top Ten of Taiwan Products” held on the morning of December 10, the COA invited Korean chef and Internet celebrity Kai Chef, famed state banquet chef Jerry Chiu, and young master chef Jerry Chen to introduce the Top Ten of Taiwan Products. Also, along with COA Deputy Minister Chen Junne-jih, they prepared and served up a creative themed meal using award-winning products to mark the end of the year.

The COA states that this year they carried on past practice and held the “2020 Top Ten of Taiwan” products selection in order to promote exports of Taiwan agriproducts and provide publicity for domestically produced agricultural processed products with special Taiwan features. The top ten were chosen from 122 premium domestically produced agriproducts that were entered in the selection process, during which experts evaluated them based on a number of criteria, including market foresight, special features of the product and potential for development, technological innovation, packaging design, and nutrition and healthiness. Ten products were selected after evaluation, with one being awarded the jury grand prize, one a gold medal, one a silver medal, one a bronze medal, and six honorable mentions. Of these, the jury grand prize was won by the Lijia Green Biotechnology Company for its 鱻果魚[grouper], the gold medal was awarded to the Ya Wei Company for its black sesame oil and ginger sauce, the silver medal was given to the Yuan Shun Food Company for its Meimai’s wide brown rice noodles for green curry flavor, and the bronze medal was awarded to the Rice House Universal Company for its “Top Rice Taiwan” gift box. Meanwhile, honorable mentions went to Hu De Hui Enterprise for its Bottarga grey mullet roe, to Fish Master for its traceable fourfinger threadfin fish, to the Huatan Farmers’ Association for its “Ultimate of Jasmine” gift box, to SauceCo Food Company for its black bean sauce gift box set, to Aquaculture Production and Marketing Group 8 of Jiadong Township of Pingtung County for its freeze-dried sliced grouper, and to Q-Yo Biotechnology for the six fresh-picked mushroom gift boxes in its “Magical Mushrooms Tribe” series. All ten of these products will be promoted through activities at the Taipei International Food Show to a target audience of foreign buyers with the aim of extolling the safety, taste, and innovative qualities of premium Taiwan agriproducts and winning international purchasing orders.

Seven themed areas to display a new era in Taiwan premium agriproducts and niche foods

Besides having a special area devoted to the “Top Ten of Taiwan” products, the Taiwan Pavilion at this year’s Food Taipei will display achievements of the COA’s “Taiwan Good Agriculture” guidance program in the “TGA  Select area.” There will also be other themed areas including the “Excellence Agricultural Products in Taiwan zone,” the “Premium Agricultural Products in Taiwan zone,” the “Prepared Foods zone,” the “Livestock and Poultry Products zone,” and the “Seafoods zone.” The Pavilion will exhibit fresh vegetable, fruit, seafood, and meat products delivered directly from production areas in Taiwan, instant or ready-to-eat packaged food developed using science and technology, creative agriproduct snack foods, premium gift and souvenir items, easily served prepared foods, and a number of processed grain health foods and elderly-friendly foods. The Pavilion will highlight the multi-faceted nature of Taiwan’s agri-food products, with their rich variety, delicious taste, and innovativeness. Buyers can also go online to browse the taiwanfresh.tw website and directly contact outstanding exhibitors.

The COA states that the Food Taipei is a can’t-miss annual event for domestic and foreign food and beverage producers and international buyers. This year December 17 and 18 will be for professional buyers, while on December 19 and 20 the event will be open to the public. Agriproduct and food buyers as well as the general public are welcome to attend to experience Taiwan food in its most splendid and diverse forms.