Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) organized its first ever, virtual conference, Palm Oil Trade Fair & Seminar (POTS Digital 2021), from January 5 – 8, 2021. The Palm Oil Trade Fair & Seminar (POTS) flagship programme of MPOC was launched in 2006 with an objective to enhance the development and growth of the Malaysian palm oil industry in local and international markets. To date, MPOC has organized more than 50 POTS in over 25 countries and it has become a benchmark and highly anticipated event in the annual calendar of the global oils and fats trade.
Considering the on-going developments restricting physical events, MPOC launched POTS Digital 2021, a fully online virtual conference bringing together world-renowned oils and fats industry leaders and experts. The theme of the conference was “Malaysian Palm Oil – Forging Forward in the New Norm”.
POTS Digital 2021 was a tremendous success. Attracting a global audience, the conference featured 8 major events and activities. The conference was supported by 22 palm oil industry sponsors. There were over 25,000 registrations from all over the world.
15 world-renowned oils and fats industry leaders and experts deliberated on the latest market developments and opportunities in the Marketing Conference; and 12 specialists and scientists shared their perspectives and the latest research on sustaining healthy lifestyles from fats and bioactives at the Palm International Nutra-Cosmeceutical Conference (PINC). International esteemed speakers conveyed their well-articulated views through video presentations and talks.
There were 4 live events at the conference. These included the dynamic Q&A sessions for both the Marketing Conference and PINC, as well as the Sustainability Debate and the CEO Forum. There were more than 2000 conference delegates participating in these real time events.
The Sustainability Debate had the theme “Vertical Challenges for Sustainable Palm Oil’s Future”. 5 international experts explored the current and emerging sustainability challenges and opportunities in the Malaysian palm oil industry, as well as globally. This included discussions on deforestation, climate change, certification, as well as addressing the social issues within the industry.
The CEO Forum had the theme “Key Growth Drivers for Malaysian Palm Oil Trade” and was a live discussion among 6 top CEOs from around the world on the way forward for the palm oil industry, particularly in the post-pandemic era. The panel of CEOs engaged with the audience in a Q&A session and give their views on the growth drivers for the oils and fats industry and the outlook for 2021.
The 6 BizMatch lounges were the venues for productive discussions between individuals and company representatives in different regions around the world, discussing potential business and other collaboration opportunities.
The interactive virtual marketing exhibition showcased 103 exhibition booths from leading Malaysian and international palm oil companies from 14 countries, who promoted their products and services to an international audience. Conference participants were able to talk with company representatives directly through the chat and other features. There were more than 18,000 unique booth visits in just the first 3 days of the conference.
POTS Digital 2021 also included wide ranging content for consumers around the world. There were 11 international chefs’ cooking demonstration videos from countries such as Malaysia, France, Kenya, Pakistan, Italy, Philippines, Turkey and the US. There was a lively race to win prizes with numerous participants trying their luck at the online contest, scavenger hunt and attempting to climb the leaderboard.
The MPOC team received accolades from industry members and delegates around the world for organizing the 4 day long, full-fledged conference in a pioneering way. Along with the comprehensive content of the conference, the design and implementation of the conference virtual platform was greatly appreciated. POTS Digital 2021 also got wide media coverage in national and international media and over 85 articles and news stories were released covering different aspects of the conference.
Conference delegates can continue logging in at www.potsdigital.vfairs.com as all Marketing Conference and PINC video presentations; marketing exhibition booths and cooking demonstrations will be available for viewing 24 hours a day, for an additional month, until February 8, 2021. Delegates can also continue browsing through the Image Gallery; watching videos, and more.
Prepared by Faisal Iqbal
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