Latin America summit sparks industry interest

The inaugural Latin American Label Summit 2004, taking place at the Mara Isabel Sheraton, Mexico City, on 8-9 June, has sparked interest from across the industry. The conference program has been confirmed and over 100 delegates have already signed up. The exhibition is now completely full, with over 40 companies having booked tabletops – including Distribudora Grafica, Gallus, Hewlett Packard, Mark Andy, Nilpeter, Omet, Raflatac, and Rotometrics.

The value of the packaging industry in Latin America is currently $23 billion and rising – with flexible packaging at the forefront. More specifically, pressure sensitive material annual consumption in Latin America is growing at more than 3-4 times the rate of consumption in the US or in Europe. With Mexico being the principal importer of machinery and materials in the region, the Latin American Label Summit has become an extremely important event for the industry in 2004.

Modernization and globalization are key issues for the label converter in Latin America, both of which will be addressed by the conference. Issues to be covered include:

Latin America and the world of labels
Analysis of Mexican label converter needs and requirements
A global brand owner’s perspective on Latin America
Trends and developments in label design and origination
Narrow web opportunities beyond pressure sensitive
Product Security and Brand Protection

Roger Pellow, Labelexpo Managing Director, said: ‘Our 2004 Latin American Label Summit is taking excellent shape – this is a fast-moving market. Nearly fifty per cent of highest quality, self-adhesive film labels were exported from the United States into Mexico. Mexican label converters have to compete with converters in the United States more and more, as transportation logistics improve, and taxes and tariffs diminish. While Mexican converting companies have maintained an exceptional ability for self-sustenance, these companies now have to compete with global players who haven’t been impacted by the same import hurdles and customer service issues Mexicans have been affected by over the years. As one of the ten largest economies in the world, Mexico will become a formidable global label player, and it’s our goal to provide the best information-sharing venue possible to facilitate this process.’