From May 13 to 15, Expo FoodTech 2025 will bring together the latest digital solutions to enhance competitiveness and promote decarbonization in the food sector, at the BEC in Bilbao, Spain
Executives from GB Foods, Danone, Campofrío or Café Fortaleza will discuss innovations in process optimization, supply chain improvements, and sustainable packaging
The food industry must continue to move firmly toward a more competitive, efficient, and resilient model. In this process, automation and the use of emerging technologies are key levers to reduce operational costs, improve productivity, and optimize logistics and resource management. As a positive side effect, these transformations also significantly reduce emissions, energy and water consumption, as well as waste and spoilage generation.
In this context, F4F – Expo Foodtech 2025, held simultaneously with Pick&Pack For Food Industry from May 13 to 15 at the BEC in Bilbao, is consolidating itself as the international trade fair where the role of technology in transforming the food production system will be analyzed. The event will bring together global voices, business leaders, institutions, and tech startups to discuss solutions that allow the sector to move toward a more efficient, digital, and environmentally friendly automated model.
Participants will include renowned professionals such as Silvia Canals, Head of Sustainability at Danone; CEOs from companies such as Eroski, Nueva Pescanova, Campofrío, Delaviuda, GB Foods or Tutti Food Group, specialized in prepared and ultra-frozen culinary solutions, as well as representatives from Capsa Food and Uvesa. They will all address the urgent need to improve the efficiency of the food system, reduce production costs, and respond to current consumer demands through initiatives such as process robotization, commitment to circular raw materials, or collaboration with other industries and public administrations.
One of the main themes at Expo FoodTech 2025 will be how digitalization and exponential technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, are boosting energy efficiency in the food sector. In this regard, Pol Torres, Head of the AI Energy&Agrifood research line at Eurecat, and John Amin, Founder and Advisor of the 3D printing consultancy Intech3D, together with an expert from Gashor—an organization specialized in the efficient management and handling of industrial ingredients—will explore how AI can automate processes, reduce errors, improve strategic decision-making, and maximize resource performance.
These resources can also be optimized through energy audits, the implementation of efficient equipment, or the use of IoT initiatives for water distribution, among other possibilities. Representatives from Christeyns (chemicals), bioMérieux (food safety), and Newheat (a leading provider of renewable heat for major consumers, industry, and urban heating) will discuss how digital solutions reduce operational costs while minimizing environmental impact.
In addition, Expo FoodTech 2025 will showcase robotics innovations that enhance workflow productivity, boosting competitiveness while promoting sustainable practices. Urko Esnaola, Head of Robotics for Industrial Flexibility Platform at Tecnalia, and Luis Manuel Martínez, Food & Beverage Vertical Market Manager at Beckhoff Automation, among others, will share how automation is revolutionizing responsible food production.
Upcycling and Sustainable Packaging: Innovation with a Positive Impact
Expo FoodTech 2025 will also be a space to explore upcycling of waste and by-products, with insights from leaders such as the Walloon agri-food competitiveness cluster Wagralim and Udapa, a cooperative dedicated to potato production. This practice transforms agricultural waste into new ingredients, energy products like biomass or bioplastics, creating new business opportunities and reducing waste.
In fact, the trade show will present progress made in sustainable packaging to comply with new European regulations promoting reusable and disposable containers. Cristina Rodríguez, Head of Sustainability at Eroski; Izaro Martínez, Marketing Director at Café Fortaleza; María Alcántara, Head of Legumes and Quality at the Garlan cooperative; Ignacio Malcorra, executive at Agua de Insalus; and Arantza Madariaga, Managing Director of the public agro-food safety foundation Elika, will reflect on the solutions and regulations related to packaging that reduce environmental impact without compromising food safety.
Plastics will also be under review, with executives from companies such as Enplater defining the future of this material in agriculture and food packaging through pioneering circular economy case studies.
None of these innovations can be fully understood without a joint strategy between businesses, administrations, and citizens. Expo FoodTech 2025 will examine, with experts like Karen Verstraete, Communications Coordinator at Food Pilot (ILVO, the Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food), how public policies and legislative frameworks are evolving at European, national, and regional levels, and what role public-private partnerships play in the structural transformation of the food industry toward a more efficient, competitive, and sustainable model.
Organized by NEBEXT and AZTI, F4F – Expo Foodtech is supported by the Bilbao City Council, the Bizkaia Provincial Council, the Basque Government, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and ICEX, as well as other organizations and industry associations.
