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Messe München and NürnbergMesse have announced a joint venture that will strengthen their position in the market for the beverage and liquid food industry, named Yontex. Yontex will bring together Munich’s Drinktec – a trade fair for the beverage and liquid food industry, and Nuremberg’s BrauBeviale – a capital goods fair for the beverage industry in Europe. The company's registered office is in Nuremberg, and the new managing director will be Rolf M Keller, previously division manager at NürnbergMesse. Both trade fairs will remain independent brands, keep their names and remain as events at their respective locations in Munich and Nuremberg – under the umbrella of Yontex. The new company Yontex will present itself for the first time at the BrauBeviale 2023 trade show in Nuremberg from 28 to 30 November. Petra Westphal, EVP of Yontex and previously project manager for Drinktec, explained the inspiration behind the Yontex name in a press conference. She broke the word down into two separate meanings with ‘Yo’ representing the word ‘you’ as a symbolism of people, and ‘ntex’ meaning ‘context’. The abstract name was created as a strategic means of ensuring both Drinktec and BrauBeviale remained at the forefront of the event. Albert Füracker, Bavarian Minister of State for Finance and Homeland, said: "The cooperation between the Nuremberg trade fair and the Munich trade fair in the field of beverage technology strengthens Bavaria's leading role in this trade fair segment worldwide". The merger of the Drinktec and BrauBeviale trade fairs into one company is said to be the largest merger to date of two trade fair flagships in Germany. Peter Ottmann, CEO at NürnbergMesse Group, commented: "We are using a unique opportunity for both exhibition companies to position ourselves together and to join forces on the world market – even if we, as two neighbouring Bavarian exhibition locations, continue to be in the competition with each other”. Reinhard Pfeiffer and Stefan Rummel, CEO’s at Messe München, added: "We are united by a common goal. With this merger, we are securing the future of Drinktec in Munich and BrauBeviale in Nuremberg. Both trade fairs want to maintain and expand their strong position in the competitive, global environment. Together they can now sharpen their brand profiles and offer customers added value through synergies.” The Federal Cartel Office has already approved this cooperation in the area of ​​beverage technology trade fairs. Both events will continue to take place at the usual locations and will retain their brand names. Drinktec will continue to take place every four years at the Munich exhibition centre, and BrauBeviale will continue taking place annually in the Nuremberg exhibition centre. Drinktec, BrauBeviale and new trade fair people will be behind the Yontex brand in the future. In the press conference, Ottmann said there would be no staff reductions, with the brand looking for additional staff.