The quartet of food and drinks industry trade shows, namely Food and Drink Expo, The National Convenience Show, Farm Shop and Deli and the Forecourt Show are an important event for the trade and a chance to assess the health and prospects of a sector that affects us all.

It’s an industry that is forever adapting, forever innovating and doing so against the background of the relentless environmental and health concerns of consumers, politicians and the media. The shows seemed slightly smaller than in recent years, which is understandable given the uncertain economic climate and the ease in which vital meetings can now be organised.

For us the most important aspect of the show is its indication as to what will be on the shelves over the coming twelve months. It’s not always a foolproof indicator (this is where we always mention those once-hyped, now largely-forgotten niche delicacies coconut water and gourmet scratchings) and indeed there didn’t seem a clear indicator of what would be the Next Big Thing, despite new sections of the show featuring Coffee Shop & Café – our favourite, unsurprisingly – and Future Foods. The one clear winner in the most popular sector stakes, though, was undoubtedly the profusion of stands devoted to vaping. Both in numbers and in the size of their stand, it’s clear that the vape market is big business, and getting bigger.

Apart from the huge industrial manufacturers, the largest areas were given over to the regional displays; Wales, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland were well represented, as were others from around the world. For overseas suppliers, there is naturally the worry of the continual post-Brexit situation; another reason, perhaps, for cutting back on the range of lines on offer and opting for quality over quantity.

What wasn’t on offer was also noticeable. There was a time when big high street brands such as Greggs and Warburton would roll up with industrial quantities of their pile ’em high street brands, but there also seemed a downturn in the healthy option market. In particular the plethora of protein bars and isotonic drinks were largely noticeable by their absence, replaced by juice-heavy drinks and savoury snacks – the Flawsome range of the former went down particularly well as did old favourites Just Crisps.

It was noticeable that there has been a high turnover of chocolatiers, with some of the old-stager brands replaced by new arrivals. Booja-Booja continue to set the standard for allergen-friendly goodness with show debutants HU providing an impressive array of taste-filled and ethical dark delicacies.

Meanwhile, long-standing attendees Just Desserts old favourite Biscotti cheesecake was the highlight of a range that was as visually stunning as it was sumptuously tasting.

Moving away from sweet offerings, there seemed less butchers in attendance, although local producers Gill’s were on hand with a traditional range of pies, sausage and bacon. No exotic flavours here; they stick to what they know and has served them well for almost a century.

Also down in numbers was the alcohol sector, perhaps a victim of the hard-hit hospitality industry. One offering that did stand out to us, though, was the Lust For Life IPA from brulobeer, low in alcohol but full in flavour. On a similar note, South Asian fusion drink producers Bhangra Blends provided an innovative range of cocktails both alcoholic and non-.

High-end ready meals were also in profusion. Cook are known in the high street for their range of foods from around the world but for a more authentic touch chicken and rice from Tasty African Food In a similar vein, the variety of pastas from Raviollie produced images of rolling Tuscan hills and sun-kissed Amalfi beaches.

But back to our favourites and we must always give a mention to the finest exhibitors of the lot. We’ve long been big fans of Traybakes, not least because of their lovely and sadly now-retired lady who always made sure we never left their stand empty-handed. They’ve now returned after a couple of years absence and their selection of flapjacks, millionaire shortbread and tiffin, to name but a small sample of their wares, is better than ever.