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From 28-30 November, BrauBeviale opened its doors at the Nuremberg Messe in Germany to over 900 exhibiting companies from over 120 countries after a four-year hiatus, marking it as one of the industry’s largest and key trade fairs. BrauBeviale specialises in the beverage industry – with a large focus on alcoholic beverages such as beer and spirits – covering aspects from ingredients to packaging. Throughout the nine halls, companies showcased their innovations, shared ideas and cultivated contacts across the industry.

Rolf Keller, managing director of organiser Yontex, said: "With strong visitor demand from all sectors of the beverage industry, our three-day show once again scored highly: The technical exchanges between experts, the wide range of exhibitors and the specialist topics addressed in the supporting programme were extremely well received by visitors.” During the three-day event, FoodBev spoke to several key players such as Krones, KHS, Symrise, Ardagh and more, learning about the latest innovations in ingredients and technologies while also exploring sustainability and the future of the beverages sector.

One area that stirred up a lot of discussion and focus is PET (polyethylene terephthalate), with multiple companies showcasing their innovations in production and packaging. PET packaging company Petainer showcased its latest innovations in refillable PET bottles, as well as plastic wine bottles, which replicate the look of glass while significantly reducing the carbon footprint of production and transport costs. On the other hand, companies such as Vetropack were focusing on reducing PET usage by making glass packaging more sustainable. Vetropack has been achieving this through reducing energy consumption and the creation of lightweight tempered glass which can be more effectively reused and recycled. For ingredients, hops had a high presence which is to be expected given the importance of hops in the brewing process. However, malts were notably present with companies such as Viking Malt and Boortmalt showcasing how they leverage malts to create superior flavours in various types of beer such as micro-IPAs, Doppelbocks, golden ales and many more.

Innovative technologies were presented throughout the event in all sectors, with companies that focus on packaging and filling, like KHS, which showcased its latest breakthroughs in energy-efficient keg filling and PET production. Automation was a hot topic in this year’s trade fair, not just automation in production but also in serving. Beermate presented its “Bar of the Future” self-service machine, designed to reduce wait times and effectively end queuing for drinks at high-attendance events such as festivals, concerts and sports events. The consumer inputs the quantity of drinks they want, and the machine automatically pours and serves the selection. The machine can be filled with kegs from various lager brands, and Beermate is working on how to fit ale kegs.

Another innovation could be found with O-I Glass, which has developed a method of printing fully customisable images directly onto glass bottles, removing the need for hard-to-recycle plastic labels. The images that are printed peel away in heat so the bottles can be reused. Of course, it was not just established companies at the event. BrauBeviale had a focus on the future with the new Young Talents Camp, which got off to an equally promising start. The new networking lounge concept aimed at attracting young Gen Z talent to all areas and levels of the beverage industry was a complete success. Andrea Kalrait, BrauBeviale's executive director, highlighted: "We had excellent responses to this offer. I can already say that we will be stepping up our activities in this interdisciplinary area for the benefit of the whole industry." Given the high turnover of students, both visiting and exhibiting, the Young Talent’s Camp was highly popular, containing a sociable area where young people could gather, have relaxed meetings and play popular drinking games. The winners of the 21st World Beverage Innovation Awards were announced in a grand ceremony at Brau Beviale, with awards for ingredients, technology, innovation and beverages, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. FoodBev’s Dan Bunt hosted the ceremony and congratulated this year’s winners: “Congratulations to all of this year's shortlisted companies. We have seen an incredible selection of new and innovative products, particularly in the technology and manufacturing sectors.”

After a four-year hiatus due to Covid-19 restrictions and last year’s Drinktec fair, BrauBeviale has been welcomed back by the industry with open arms. Caroline Pötzl, managing director of Kieselmann, commented: "In addition to holding interesting discussions with trade visitors, it is the moments of reunion with long-standing customers, business partners and friends that make this trade fair a complete success. It somehow feels like a big family reunion. We are already looking forward to meeting everyone again at BrauBeviale 2024.”