The scale of SIAL China 2013 - a major food expo - will grow 15 percent this year in terms of exhibitors and visitors, despite the global economic slowdown, the organizer said in an e-mailed statement on Monday.

According to the organizer, around 80 percent of the expo's overseas quota was sold out at the end of 2012, faster than in the previous year.

The expo will be held in Shanghai in May.

The rapid expansion of China's food import sector is the major reason for the growth amid a sluggish economy in both Europe and the United States, the organizer said.