F4F – Expo Foodtech brings together the food and technology industry to lay the groundwork for its third edition

• F4F – Expo Foodtech 2023 holds its first advisory board to shape the new edition designed by and for the food and beverage industry.
• From 16 to 18 May, the Bilbao Exhibition Center will showcase the latest innovations and solutions in robotics, automation and 4.0 technologies that will help the sector to improve its competitiveness.

Madrid, 30 November 2022 – F4F – Expo Foodtech is making progress in the organisation of its third edition, which will take place from 16 to 18 May 2023 at the BEC in Bilbao. After the success of the last edition, which brought together more than 7,000 attendees, F4F – Expo Foodtech has positioned itself as a benchmark forum designed by and for the industry, in which to analyse and find technological solutions for the challenges it must face in order to continue growing in a sustainable way.

The 50 leading firms in innovation in the sector have come together to promote a third edition in which Automation, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Digital Twin and Cybersecurity technologies, among others, will be the main protagonists. Purchasing managers, plant managers and production managers from the main meat, dairy, fishing, bakery, prepared products, snacks, preserves and beverages companies will be able to understand how to apply these technologies to increase their productivity, while also finding the most suitable technological partner for their objectives.

The benefits that technology brings to the food industry production chain cover a wide range, from being able to better cope with current cost increases or inflation, or having digitised product traceability solutions to provide more guarantees to consumers, to promoting sustainability and circular economy strategies. For this reason, many companies in the sector are already taking steps towards its adoption and the use of Artificial Intelligence in the food and beverage industry is expected to grow by 45.7% until 2027.

María Naranjo, Director of the Food Industry at ICEX, was enthusiastic about participating once again in F4F – Expo Foodtech: “This is an event that we have seen born and we are seeing consolidate. It is a privilege for us to promote the city of Bilbao to become the foodtech capital”. Along the same lines, Azucena Castro, Project Manager of biosalud Basque Trade & Investment, highlighted the quality of the speakers who attend F4F – Expo Foodtech and who make numerous companies come to the event and show interest in Bilbao’s foodtech ecosystem.

Once again this year, Bilbao will be the world capital of the foodtech sector and for three days it will show professionals from all over the world the latest innovations and technological solutions that are transforming the food industry in all its segments. More than 250 exhibiting companies will be presenting the latest solutions in robotics and automation, processing and packaging machinery for the different segments of the food industry, as well as in food safety and science.

Experience and Knowledge

Under the motto ‘Shaping the new rules of food‘ the Food 4 Future World Summit, which takes place within the framework of F4F – Expo Foodtech, will uncover the latest trends for the food and beverage industry. More than 450 experts from around the world will provide more than 150 hours of inspiration with key strategies to address the challenges facing the sector.

Rogelio Pozo, Director of the Food 4 Future World Summit and CEO of AZTI, stressed that “F4F – Expo Foodtech is the point of reference for all professionals in the agri-food industry and the place where the challenges of the sector are made known”.

This congress will be the stage where experiences and success stories of the application of automation and robotics technologies to companies in the food sector will be presented. How the transition to Industry 4.0, the improvement of sustainability in the food industry and the demand for new plant-based foods can be carried out by applying the most appropriate technologies with the best technological partner. The congress agenda will once again include the European Foodtech Nations Summit, which brings together pioneering European regions in food technology to share their innovation and digitalisation strategies, and the EIT Food Innovation Forum, the annual innovation forum organised by EIT Food.

Leading firms in the food industry such as Alimentos Sanygran, Carrefour, CAPSA Food, Eroski, Bimbo, Campofrío, Azucarera, Iparlat and EcoLumber; companies with technological and foodtech solutions such as Inser Robótica, Buhler, Dassault Systemes, Lantern, Biomerieux, Omron, Tenalia, Eurecat, IBM, Multiscan, Servycat, Vodafone, BASF, T-Systems, Viscofan, Serveo, AlgaEnergy, Acciona, Deloitte, CaixaBank AgroBank, or Sener; organisations and associations such as Basque Trade, ICEX, HAZI, CNTA, Food for Life Spain, FIAB, Spain FoodTech Nation, Grupo Spri, EIT Food, Jetro (Japan External Trade Organisation), San Telmo Business School, Eatable Adventures, CEIN, Tech Transfer Agrifood, or AZTI; and institutional representatives of the Basque Government, Bilbao Ekintza and MAPA (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food) have participated in this first Advisory Council to draw the new rules of foodtech.