Easyfairs, organiser of Packaging Innovations, has made its venues available to local and national authorities in the fight against the coronavirus Covid-19.

Easyfairs organises more than 200 events worldwide and owns or operates 10 exhibition halls in Europe. In the current situation these facilities are of course unoccupied. In order to participate in the collective mobilisation against coronavirus, the company has proposed to the Belgian, Dutch and Swedish authorities to make its halls available free of charge according to their needs. These are Flanders Expo (Ghent), Antwerp Expo (Antwerp), Namur Expo (Namur) and Nekkerhall Brussels North (Mechelen) in Belgium, the halls of Hardenberg and Gorinchem in the Netherlands as well as Kistamässan (Stockholm), Malmömässan (Malmö) and Abymässan (Gothenburg) in Sweden.

Eric Everard, CEO and founder of Easyfairs, explained, ‘We are impressed and touched by the unconditional and widespread commitment of authorities and healthcare services around the world. For our part, it seemed obvious that we should be part of the collective effort to combat coronavirus and provide as much relief as possible to those directly affected by it. Our exhibition halls can accommodate temporary health centres, welcome and sorting areas for patients, storage areas for medical equipment, etc. The authorities that we have contacted have expressed their strong interest in this proposal, which they undoubtedly will implement if necessary.’

The evolution of Covid-19 and the acceleration of the measures taken by the authorities to limit its spread are having a considerable impact, directly or indirectly, on the entire population and all economic sectors. The events industry is specifically affected since exhibitions and trade fairs planned for the coming weeks have been suspended in most countries.