Vinnytsia Residents for the First Time at the Foire-de-Dijon International Fair: What Surprised the French

The Foire de Dijon is one of the five largest fairs in France. It is visited by 160,000 guests annually. In addition, it is the biggest economic forum in the region and a powerful platform for finding suppliers and sharing experiences. Dijon Fair combines a variety of attractions, including food court, culinary competitions, workshops, round tables, shows and more. Separate halls of the festival pavilion are dedicated to participants from other countries who represent the culture and gastronomic heritage of their homeland. The exhibition constantly innovates and promotes a responsible attitude to the environment. This year, the organizers require confirmation of vaccination, the presence of antigens or a negative PCR test to enter the fairgrounds.

This year, among the countries invited to the international component, along with Italy, India, Canada and Ireland, is Ukraine, represented by the UA Taste stand. Its coordinators are the public associations Ukrainian Organic Cluster and Roads of Wine and Taste of Ukraine. Vinnytsia City Council is a partner of the Ukrainian pavilion and supports the participation of Vinnytsia companies in this exhibition. Among them are Gigineishvili Wine House, TM Solodka Mriia, pottery workshop Etnochary, Vinnytsia Food Factory and Vinnytsia store Nalyvky zi Lvova. Entrepreneurs from the Vinnytsia Club of Business People also took part in the cultural and business exchange. In total, more than 40 people represent Ukraine at this event.

"Vinnytsia for the first time at the prestigious International Gastronomic Fair in Dijon. Chefs and producers from all over the world have been coming here for 100 years in a row. Finally, the Ukrainian pavilion has opened, it is nice that our gastronomy will be represented by five Vinnytsia enterprises," said the mayor Serhii Morhunov on his Facebook page. "For Vinnytsia, this is a good opportunity to declare itself as a city where quality and delicious products are produced. I am glad that our cooperation with the city of Dijon, which has been going on since 2019, is gaining momentum. Our entrepreneurs will return home with new experiences and new contacts that are important for business partnerships. And I hope that Vinnytsia will also be invited to the Foire de Dijon-2022."

Deputy Mayor of Vinnytsia Andrii Ocheretnyi shared his impressions of participating in the fair: "The presence of the Ukrainian representative office and Vinnytsia producers at this landmark event for the whole region aroused considerable interest among visitors, visible to the naked eye. They taste, ask questions and share their positive impressions of Ukraine. It is nice to hear from the French high praise for Vinnytsia wines, food and pottery. This is a signal that our manufacturers can be competitive in the European market."

On the opening day, the Ukrainian stand was visited by Deputy Mayor of Dijon Sladana Zivkovic, President of Vitagora agro-cluster Pierre Guez, President of Beten Jean Roche, heads of departments of the Burgundy-Franche-Comté region, as well as chairman of the fair organizing committee and president of the association Dijon Congrexpo Jean Battault who in 2020 visited Vinnytsia on a business visit.

The French writer Marie-France Claire, whose family comes from Vinnytsia, also helps to acquaint the French with the exotic Ukrainian culture. The Revolution of Dignity inspired the author to write a book "Five Majors for My Stranger", which tells the story of her ancestors who left Ukraine after the Liberation War of 1917-1921 and were forced to seek a new homeland in Europe. On November 2, the Day of Ukraine took place at the exhibition. On this day, the UA Taste stand focused the attention of all visitors, participants and organizers of the gastro fair. There were master classes on traditional crafts and borscht, wine and meat tastings, presentation of tours in Ukraine, meetings with representatives of participating cities, music program and many other activities, including a fashion show in embroidered shirts, sand art show and lecture "Anna of Kyiv – Queen of France".

"Every day the fair is visited by several thousand people who come from different regions of France," said Viktoriia Nikolaieva, a representative of Vinnytsia Art Space EtnoChary. "Everyone here is very interested to see the richness of our culture and gastronomy. In particular, my colleagues and I present Podillia ceramics and traditional pottery. On the Day of Ukraine we held a master class on pottery. People willingly visit the Ukrainian stand, join the activities and take with them not only interesting tastes, souvenirs and impressions, but also a part of the Ukrainian flavor. The still unknown country is so open to them that they want to travel to it, see everything with their own eyes and get even more good emotions."