From 8 to 10 January, for the first time in collaboration with Horecava, Bellavita Expo , the leading B2B event for the promotion of excellence in Made in Italy, has reaffirmed itself as a growing success by bringing an exclusive pavilion of more than 150 Italian companies, who presented their products to over 67,000 buyers and professionals in the Dutch industry. The Italian Ambassador in the Netherlands, Andrea Perugini and the Secretary of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Netherlands, Nicoletta Brondi, both great supporters of Bellavita, also attended the event.

The Bellavita Awards quality competition , the first international programme dedicated to the recognition of the real Made in Italy, consisted of a panel of over 200 judges, selected amongst buyers, journalists, restaurateurs, delicatessen owners, chefs and sommeliers. During the three days of the event, the Judges tasted and evaluated the nominated products, awarding the best for the Dutch market.

Fidani Healthy Food , a company specialised in gluten-free and lactose-free bakery products, after achieving the same recognition at Bellavita London 2017, won again the Best Food award, this time with "Domino", a delicious lactose-free chocolate biscuit. The Best Beverage award was won by BioTea , a Piedmont's company of fine teas, with their "Loose Leaf Pu Erh Tea".

Special prizes:
The title of Most Innovative product is a capsule of meat broth compatible with Nespresso machines, a brand new product by Gocce di Caffè that allows you to have a meat broth in 15 seconds. The Most Sustainable product is Porcini Mushroom Tortelli by Alberto Triglia , a company that still uses a traditional production process; each tortello is in fact handmade, one by one. The best product for the Benelux market , which is the product that best matches the taste of local consumers, is Franciacorta Saten Millesimato 2012 by Vigna Dorata , a company based in Lombardy that already won the Wine category at Bellavita London 2017. Finally, excluding bubbles, the best ranked still wine is the white wine from Friuli: Ronco Broilo by Conte D'Attimis-Maniago .

With the excellent quality of all products on display, "free from" products attracted the interest of the public. Vegan cheeses and ice-creams, gluten-free flours and lactose-free biscuits are just some of the novelties presented during the event, confirming the recent market trends.

Sponsors of the event, Birrificio Angelo Poretti held a masterclass where they explained in detail the role of hops, the history of the brewery and the aspects characterising their beers. Particularly appreciated their innovative Poretti 7 La Mielizia, which the judges of the Awards recognised as the best beer presented at the Expo.

The Amsterdam event is just one of the seven annual events of Bellavita Expo. In addition to the Netherlands, Bellavita showcases every year the excellence of Italian food and wine in London, Toronto, Warsaw, Chicago, Mexico City and Bangkok. The next stop will be overseas, in Toronto, in an exclusive area within the RC Show (Restaurants Canada Show), the leading professional event in Canada, with more than 17,000 professionals from the Horeca and Food Service sectors.