Belgian Week kicks off with private chocolate workshop

Yesterday marked the start of the 4th edition of the Belgian Week, held this week at the Pullman Bucharest World Trade Center, an event organised by the Belgian-Romanian Business Association (BEROBA) and themed around food. “In this edition of the Belgian Week gourmets will be privileged, because the whole event revolves around the gastronomy theme,” according to Stefan Popescu, executive chef, Bucharest World Trade Center.

The Belgian Week is meant to “foster the excellent economic relations between two members of the European Union,” according to Thomas Baekelandt, ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to Romania. The trade balance between the two countries was EUR 562.5 million in 2015, going up from EUR 421.1 million in 2014, and exports from the Belgian food industry to Romania were EUR 150 million in 2015.

Throughout the week, the Bucharest World Trade Center has prepared different menus to celebrate the Belgian food tradition. “In the Barbizon restaurant we have prepared a special menu dedicate to this event which is distinguished by the authenticity of the recipes, and the origin of the ingredients. [Specifically] for the Belgian Week, we have imported the highly appreciated ‘crevettes Grises’, seashells from the North Sea, Belcolade, Belgian chocolate with at least 70 percent chocolate,” Popescu explained. The menu further will be further made up of endives and white asparagus prepared in a traditional Flemish style.

Moreover, various events are scheduled for the week, including business conferences and seminars and informal networking sessions, and a full-day seminar on Thursday with the theme “Food – a Long Supply Chain”. Moreover, Wednesday and Thursday will be marked by open business days for the Belgian business community in Romania, and a Gala Dinner on Wednesday at the New York Ballroom. “Belgian Week is a valuable chance to introduce our culture and gastronomy to the local community. Every year, the event gets bigger and raises the interest of more participants, becoming a unique network of business opportunities,” stated Alain Schodts, BEROBA president.

In 2015, Romania was Belgium’s 35th client for exports and 45th supplier for imports, a slight increase from 2014, when it was the 39th client and 48th supplier. The main export sections were chemicals (17.5 percent), machinery & equipment (16.7 percent) and transport equipment (14.7 percent), while the main import sections were machinery & equipment (26.2 percent), transport equipment (20.7 percent) and textiles (11.3 percent), according to data from the Belgian Foreign Trade Agency presented at the conference.

In total, imports from Belgium were of EUR 1,484.4 in 2015 (18.4 percent increase from 2014), and exports to Belgium were EUR 921.9 million (10.8 percent increase from 2014). Machinery & equipment, transport, chemicals and textiles were the major trade sectors between the two countries.

Andreea Tint