Sixty-one SMEs and four business associations from eight countries in Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia are exhibiting together at SIAL Paris 2026 for the first time.
For the first time, 61 small and medium-sized food producers and four business associations from Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia were taking part together in SIAL Paris 2026, held from 17 to 21 October at the Paris Nord Villepinte exhibition centre. As one of the world’s leading food trade exhibitions, SIAL brings together thousands of exhibitors and international buyers, distributors and retailers.
The participation of SMEs and business associations is supported by three projects funded by the European Union and implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC): 1) Ready4Trade Central Asia: Fostering Prosperity Through the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor; 2) Armenia: Building Sustainable Apparel and Agribusiness Value Chains; and 3) EU4Business: Empowering Trade and Competitiveness in Eastern Partnership Countries (ETaC). The initiative helps expand the international presence of the participating businesses, while also promoting trade connections, knowledge exchange and cooperation across the region.
The participating companies include:
- Armenia: 16 companies presenting dried fruits, sweets, teas and preserves
- Kazakhstan: 4 companies, participating with the National Oilseed Processors Association
- Kyrgyzstan: 6 SMEs from the dried fruit sector, participating in SIAL
- Moldova: 9 SMEs from dried fruits (mainly prunes), nuts, processed fruit products and confectionery
- Tajikistan: 8 companies from the dried fruit sector, supported by the International Association of Producers and Exporters of Agriproducts of Tajikistan (IAPEAT)
- Turkmenistan: 5 companies from the dried fruit sector
- Ukraine: 5 SMEs producing processed fruits, nuts and berries, alongside one business association UKRSADVINPROM
- Uzbekistan: 8 companies from the dried fruit sector, participating with the Association of Processors and Exporters of Fruits and Vegetables of Uzbekistan (UZPEX)
Participation in the expo is particularly significant for smaller producers, many of whom face challenges in accessing international markets. Through the projects’ support, these businesses increase their visibility, develop their export readiness and strengthen their capacity to compete internationally, including by meeting with potential buyers, face-to-face.
Dorin Cibotaru, CEO, Nisvinex Grup from Moldova, said: ‘Taking part in SIAL was an excellent opportunity to strengthen relations with existing partners and to make new business contacts. We met importers from Norway, the Netherlands, Hungary, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Egypt, Algeria and Morocco, and started talks on supplying dried prunes, pitted prunes and apple chips. With some of them we have already signed contracts and received orders for the coming period. On the national stand we had more visibility than we would have had on our own.’
For several enterprises, the exhibition will also provide a first opportunity to participate in an international trade exhibition of this scale. By bringing together producers and business associations from eight countries at one international event, ITC is creating opportunities for direct exchange among enterprises and sector organizations that face similar challenges and share complementary interests.
“Taking part in SIAL Paris 2026 was an important experience for the development of our company and for strengthening our business relations. The event gave us the opportunity to meet potential partners from Austria, the Czech Republic, France and Turkey, to exchange experience and to open new prospects for international cooperation,” said Ion Bivol, Administrator of Bivcom Prim.
The exhibition offers participating businesses an opportunity to learn from one another’s experiences in product development, quality standards, certification, marketing and export promotion. It also encourages new contacts between business associations, facilitates the exchange of market intelligence and opens possibilities for commercial cooperation across national borders.
Armen Zargaryan, ITC Regional Trade Promotion Adviser, said: ‘SIAL Paris is a gateway to global food markets. For many of these entrepreneurs, it is their first exhibition of this scale, and a chance to turn years of hard work into new business opportunities. Our goal is to help them build lasting commercial relationships that make their businesses more competitive.’
About the International Trade Centre — The International Trade Centre is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. ITC assists small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and transition economies to become more competitive in global markets, thereby contributing to sustainable economic development within the frameworks of the Aid-for-Trade agenda and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
For more information, visit www.intracen.org.
