Award-winning lunch! show returns to London on Tuesday 23 September

With the final preparations now well underway, next week’s two day lunch! trade show – kicking off at 10am on Tuesday 23 September at the Business Design Centre, London – looks set for another record turnout.

Renowned for attracting key buyers and decision makers from across the retailing, hospitality, snacking, convenience, and catering sectors, over 6,000 attendees are expected to visit lunch! on 23-24 September.  Many of the country’s biggest high street operators, food retailers, and contract caterers will be among them.  Aramark, Boots, Caffe Nero, Cineworld, Costa Coffee, EAT., Elior UK, Greggs, John Lewis, Lidl UK, M&S, Ocado, Pret A Manger, Rail Gourmet, Sainsbury's, Starbucks, Superdrug, Tesco, Upper Crust, Waitrose, and Morrisons – are just some of the big names that have already registered alongside thousands of independents.

Having recently sold out of all available exhibition space at its three-floor venue – lunch! 2014 will feature an unprecedented 300 exhibiting companies.  Buyers looking to refresh and expand their lunchtime offerings will find plenty of fresh new products ideas from some of the world’s most innovative manufacturers and suppliers of food, drink, packaging, catering equipment and technology.  The full exhibitor list is now available online at https://onlineexhibitormanual.com/divlunch14/Exhi/exhibitorList.aspx.

Innovation Challenge Showcase & Awards 2014

Aside from the wealth of new launches being unveiled at lunch! 2014, this year’s visitors will also be the first to see the results of the show’s annual Innovation Challenge Awards.

This popular show feature, designed to showcase the best food-to-go innovations over the last twelve months, lets visiting buyers decide the final shortlist.  They get to cast their votes for their favourite new innovations in the Innovation Challenge Showcase (located on the upper feature level) on the show’s opening day.  The products to secure the most votes before 4pm on 23 September (one per visitor) will then be invited to ‘pitch’ their new innovations live to a panel of industry judges at 1.15pm the following day.  The results will be announced just a few hours later at 3pm.

Innovation Challenge entries to date include:

• Vita Aloe: Asiana
• Butterfly Cup: Butterfly Cup
• Porridge, Soup and Pasta Pots: Chiltern Foods
• Love Popcorn: Consett Popcorn Company
• WAT KITCHEN Chicken & Noodle Meal: Crown Foods – WAT KITCHEN
• CyBake FIR: CyBake Food Manufacturing Software from RedBlack
• Wribbon: ELLER foodPackaging GmbH
• Enhance: enhance drinks
• EssentialFood: G&G Food Supplies
• HPP 100% Pomegranate Juice: G.L
• ifork: Jenpak
• Jools: Jools
• Lemongrass Chilli Sambal Paste: Karimix
• Apple and Cinnamon Love Fruit Tea: Love Taste Co
• Heartbeet: Love Taste Co
• Vanilla Frappe: Love Taste Co
• Metcalfe's skinny Selfie Range: Metcalfe's skinny
• mini NOM NOMs: mini NOM NOMs
• Oppo Ice Cream: Oppo Ice Cream
• Overly Premium Sports Drink: Overly
• Phat Soup Server: Phat Pasty Co
• Hard Foncage: Pidy
• LabelLogic & NutriLogic Software: Planglow
• Fru Snax: Premium Snack Company
• DayFresh Bloomer Box™: RAP
• SANSU YUZU & PEAR Fruit Drink: Sansu Drinks
• Simplee Aloe Drinks: Simplee Aloe Drinks
• Soulful OnePot British Pulled Pork: Soulful Food
• Soulful OnePot Mexican Bean Quinoa: Soulful Food
• Soulful OnePot Thai Green Chicken: Soulful Food
• Sass™: The Sassy Drinks Co
• Handle-it Cup Carrier: Tri-Star Packaging
• Tri-Pot™ Deli Pots: Tri-Star Packaging
• Tri-Label Online: Tri-Label
• Whitworths Shots: Whitworths – Healthier Snacking

Working lunch! Theatre

Notable highlights in this year’s Working lunch! Theatre (sponsored by Magrini) include sessions by Emma Read from Horizons (kicking off the 2014 line-up at 10.15am on the show’s opening day), Sarah Doyle from EAT., Steve Flanagan from Starbucks UK, Tim Hall from Pod, Wendy Duncan from Unilever Food Solutions, and Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of Leon and The Sustainable Restaurant Association.

The Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) have been working with Costa, the UK’s largest coffee chain, to develop a pioneering new sustainable standard for coffee shops and cafés.  Launching at the lunch!, Henry Dimbleby will use his 3pm Keynote on 23 September to announce the full details of the rating initiative, which goes ‘beyond the beans’ to consider not only the coffee but the cafés’ entire operations.

Full timings and seminar summaries are available at www.lunchshow.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/lunchTheatre.pdf.

British Smoothie Championships

Taking place at 1.15pm on Tuesday 23 September, the popular live finals of the annual British Smoothie Championships (sponsored by Magrini) has built an exciting reputation for keeping the lunch! show audience firmly on the edge of their seats.

Open to all professional smoothie baristas in the UK, contestants put their considerable talents to the test as they move through heats to earn a place in the grand final.  Audience participation is a key ingredient of the judging process, and the competition is widely-recognised as an inspirational catalyst for new ideas for never-before-tasted smoothie recipes.

The eventual 2014 British Smoothie Champion will enjoy a wealth of industry prestige, plus grand prize worth over £1100, whilst attending visitors can also share in the success by enjoying invaluable tips from some of the best smoothie baristas in the business.

lunch! 2014

The show’s free Keynotes, the popular 30-stand Innovation Zone, the annual British Smoothie Championships, and the Innovation Challenge Showcase are all located on the show’s aptly-named Upper Feature Level.

The new lunch! show app for 2014 (sponsored by The NPD Group) includes everything visitors will need to start planning their time at the show in advance; including a map to the venue, exhibitor details, floor plan, and the Working lunch! Theatre listings.  To download, please follow this link: http://eventmobi.com/lunch2014.

lunch! is free to attend for pre-registered trade visitors and relevant press representatives only.  Advance registration closes when the show opens at 10am on Tuesday 23 September (after which a £20 door charge may apply).  To register for a free trade pass to lunch!, taking place on 23-24 September at the Business Design Centre in London, please visit www.lunchshow.co.uk and quote priority code PR (direct link: http://www.eventdata.co.uk/Visitor/Lunch.aspx?TrackingCode=PR).

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Media enquiries & press pass requests to:
Emma-Louise Jones, PR Manager

Editorial representatives of relevant trade and consumer media (including freelancers) are invited to apply for press passes to lunch! via email to ejones@divcom.co.uk before 5pm on Monday 22 September.  (Please note, additional details may be requested to verify journalistic activity and all press passes are issued at the management’s discretion.)

t: +44 (0)1273 645134
e: ejones@divcom.co.uk
Website: www.divcom.co.uk
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=5009585
Twitter: www.twitter.com/DiversifiedUK
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DiversifiedUK

Exhibitor enquiries to:
Chris Brazier, Group Event Manager
t: +44 (0)1273 645123
e: cbrazier@divcom.co.uk
Website: www.lunchshow.co.uk
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=3143327
Twitter: www.twitter.com/lunchexhibition
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/lunch/106355532742317