Fourth edition of Food 4 Future brings the very latest solutions for the transformation of the food sector to the Basque Country

• At the Euskadi Basque Country stand, Basque public companies involved in the food sector; HAZI, NEIKER and ELIKA, will show the strength of the region when it comes to food.
• The event will bring together over 8,000 visiting professionals, 280 presenting firms and 450 international experts.

From today and until 18 April, the fourth edition of Food 4 Future – Expo Foodtech, the most important event in the world in innovation for the Food and Beverage Industry, takes place at the Bilbao Exhibition Center.

The opening act was presided by the Basque Minister for Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment, Arantxa Tapia; accompanied by the Councillor for Economic Development, Trade and Employment from Bilbao City Council, Xabier Ochandiano; the Foral Deputy for Economic Promotion of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, Ainara Basurko; the president of Food 4 Future Expo Foodtech, Javier Dueñas; and the Director of Food 4 Future World Summit and CEO of AZTI, Rogelio Pozo.

Under the banner Foodtech 6.0 F4F will attract over 8,000 visiting industry professionals, 280 exhibitor firms and over 450 international experts to share solutions, strategies and success stories to help transform food production facilities into greener, more sustainable and technologically advanced operations. This year, as a new feature, the Pick&Pack for Food Industry event, specializing in packaging and logistics for the food sector, will be held simultaneously.

The fourth edition of Food 4 Future will also host the F4F World Summit, co-organized by the technology centre specializing in the marine and food value chain, AZTI, with a series of talks and roundtable discussions held to redefine the future of the agrifood sector through innovation, customization and sustainability.

Euskadi Basque Country Stand

The application of technology in agrifood production and the adaptation of companies to these innovative processes are essential to guarantee the future of a competent, efficient and sustainable food and gastronomy value chain.

The Euskadi Basque Country stand at Food 4 Future shares the tools available at institutional level to drive this technological transformation of companies, and the instruments to support the development of new business ideas within the food ecosystem, a strategic sector for the Basque economy.

The Basque Government offers different tools, such as mentoring programmes for start-ups, an important network of research centres for already-consolidated firms that want to advance in innovation, and information on locations, conditions, etc. for foreign companies looking to establish a presence in the Basque Country.

The stand will also show how our region is a force in agrifood, through HAZI, NEIKER and ELIKA, public companies involved in the food sector.

HAZI, the foundation for driving the competitiveness and sustainability of the food and forestry value chain, and revitalizing rural and coastal environments in the Basque Country, will present two projects:

• The application of Blockchain technology in the process of certifying beef with the Eusko Label - Euskal Okela, for the automated traceability of the meat chain leaving a record of every operation in the certified process, ensuring a "safe and unmodifiable" record and greater guarantees for the consumer.
• Automatic Identification system (AIS) for boats, allowing for the monitoring of professional vessels of more than 15 metres in length using geopositioning technology to transmit the position, speed and course of vessels on a continuous basis, storing over 1 million entries daily.

The NEIKER technology centre, a member of the Basque Research and Technology Alliance, will present the findings of a specialist study on the cultivation of microalgae.

Since 2008, NEIKER has led this research to transform microalgae cultivation to obtain products and biomolecules of agrifood interest as a complement to conventional agriculture.

At the fair, the technology centre will show new fertilisers containing microalgae in their composition, sustainably sourced and more respectful of the environment, or the incorporation of these micro-organism as an additive in animal diets, for a better immune system and better animal welfare.

At the same time, the AZTI stand will focus on five key areas: new foods, biotechnology, FoodTech, driving new business opportunities and innovation in food and health.

What's on offer at the fourth edition of F4F?

Over the course of three days, prominent companies including AgroBank, AZTI, Basque Culinary Center, Blendhub, Chemometric Brain, Christeyns, the Basque Food Cluster, IFR, Siemens and Tecnalia, among others, will showcase cutting-edge foodtech innovations spanning robotics and automation, sustainability, and food science and safety, among other solutions. This shows the Basque Country's dedication to fostering business development and nurturing the startup of new companies in food and gastronomy, a key sector of the region's economy.

Once again, this year F4F -Expo Foodtech will host the Food 4 Future World Summit, emphasizing the key role of technology in food production and preservation. This educational segment will put the spotlight on cutting-edge advances in precision agriculture, sustainable practices and preservation technologies, as well as looking at the implications of generative and adaptive AI on the industry landscape. Leading companies in the food industry will also tackle future challenges and trends, the changing demands of consumers, food security and the incorporation of next-generation ingredients.

The public companies HAZI, NEIKER and ELIKA, as well as being present at the Euskadi Basque Country stand, will also participate in this educational segment F4F, with conferences and round tables addressing issues such as food waste, sustainability and food safety, the use of microalgae for obtaining new agrifood products and the reduction of packaging waste

This is the agenda for the participation of the public companies in the conference sector of F4F:

16 April

10:30 HAZI, together with SPRI, will offer a talk on the panorama of the Basque agrifood sector. (AZTI Auditorium)

11:00 HAZI, together with the Basque Culinary Center and 2 startups, will present the programme “BCC Culinary Action on the road”. (AZTI Auditorium)

11:00 ELIKA will present an introduction to food waste in the food sector based on the diagnosis as part of the “Vertical Integration of Technologies for the Assessment and Reduction of Food Waste Day”. (Plant Manager Arena)

11:30 HAZI will moderate a conference on BIND 4.0 – Basque Open Innovation Platform. (AZTI Auditorium)

12:30 Director of ELIKA, Arantza Madariaga will participate in a roundtable on “How can we reduce the environmental impact across the packaging value chain?”. (PICK & PACK event)

16:30 ELIKA will moderate a roundtable on how to advance towards sustainability without sacrificing food security. (Auditorium 2)

17 April

10:00 HAZI will participate in a talk on the main world trends and their impact on the food value chain. (AZTI Auditorium)

15:30 ELIKA will moderate a roundtable titled “Food Safety & Security in a Changing World”. (Auditorium 3)

16:30 Director of NEIKER, Leire Barañano, will moderate a roundtable focused on the potential of microalgae for the European agrifood industry under the title “Navigating the potential of algae in the agrifood sector: opportunities and current challenges for the integration of algae-based products and service in the European agrifood sector”.