Italian fare and talent

Showcasing the latest trends and products, the Bellavita Expo is the largest business-to-business exposition of Italian food and beverages outside of Italy. Iggy Fenech heads to the one in London.

As I take a seat at the cocktail centre, the smell of freshly baked pizza wafts in my direction. Behind me, business owners chat and gesticulate away in Italian, and it becomes clear that many of them have known each other for many years. Upstairs, meanwhile, the clinking of hundreds of bottles of wine, prosecco, olive oil, sauces and more heralds the start of the tasting sessions that are about to begin.

This is the Bellavita Expo, a trade show that takes place all across the world, with stops in Amsterdam, Moscow, Bangkok, Mexico City, Warsaw, Chicago, Toronto and London. And it’s become so big over the past few years that, last year alone, over 1,000 Italian companies from across the globe took part.

“I am always on the lookout for the best Italian brands and products,” says Grace Paterno Shaw, the founder of LuxItalian, a recently-formed holiday-planning company based in London, which organises luxury tours based on food, culture and history to the Italian peninsula and its...