The Fruit Attraction trade fair, organised by FEPEX and IFEMA, has only been held three times but has already made a name for itself as the premier meeting point of the fruit and vegetable sector in Spain. At least that is how it seems, given the turnout at this year’s event which was held in Madrid between 19 and 21 October.

Mercabarna managing director Montserrat Gil de Bernabé represented the World Union of Wholesale Markets (WUWM) when she took part in the high-level meeting organised by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Enterprise and Industry on contractual practices in the food supply chain.

The 4th International Green Med Forum, an annual event organised by the prestigious publication Green Med Journal that brings together parties involved in the fruit and vegetable sector from across the Mediterranean, was held in Tunisia from 28 to 30 September.

The Barcelona Food Cluster Association, an organisation spearheaded by Mercabarna, is continuing to promote actions that can improve the competiveness of its food business members. The latest involved organising a visit to the Institute for Agrofood Research and Technology (IRTA) in Monells, Girona on 20 September, attended by nine companies. The visit was part of the activities scheduled within the innovation group the Association promotes.

Representatives of Catalan agricultural production and distribution have joined forces to create the Code of Good Business Practices throughout the entire food chain. The code is a memorandum of understanding with 54 commitments aimed at bolstering and improving relations among the parties in the chain.

Can you imagine a machine that cooks food in industrial quantities in a minimum of time and maintains the same taste as homemade food? This is the pioneering technology that goes by the name ‘T’ developed by Foodtopía, a business which creates technology applications to manufacture pre-cooked convenience food for the foodservice channel.

Architect Willy Müller became the new general manager of Barcelona Regional, the agency responsible for urban development and metropolitan infrastructures, in an appointment announced on 12 September.

The ‘5-a-Day’ campaign promoted by Mercabarna and the Barcelona and Province Fruit and Vegetable Wholesalers’ Business Association (AGEM) is kicking off the 2011-2012 school year with an important new feature: a new-look website www.5aldia.es.

Once again, Mercabarna and the Barcelona and Province Fruit and Vegetable Wholesalers’ Business Association (AGEM) will organise the joint presence of five market firms in the Fruit Attraction trade fair to be held this year at the IFEMA centre in Madrid from 19 to 21 October.

On 15 September, Mercabarna managers and representatives of the new board of the Fishmongers’ Association of Catalonia, chaired by Carlos Galve, held the first work meeting organised since the board was elected in June.