As the global baking industry recovers from supply chain, labor and inflation challenges, iba, May 18-22 in Düsseldorf, Germany, aims to offer a forum for the industry to come together to collaborate and inspire one another. 

“Bakers are experiencing increased employee costs, energy costs and ingredient costs,” said Susann Seidemann, director of iba. “Dairy ingredients, especially, we’re seeing an increase in costs, so bakers are needing to look for alternatives to those ingredients.” 

In addition, Seidemann pointed out that with the Paris Climate Agreement, she expects more baking companies to have sustainability on the mind with 2030 being a major milestone for sustainability goals. 

“It’s a worldwide issue, but especially in Europe, they have to be completely sustainable as a company by 2030, which is a real challenge for bakers,” she said. “We have to start to focus on that again in 2025, 2027 and 2030 to meet those goals.”

To meet these needs, iba will feature seven halls of exhibit space where suppliers to the industry will showcase their latest equipment, ingredients and services to assist bakers in all their operational, formulation and business goals. Sifting through that many halls and programming can be daunting, so iba has launched the new iba platform to help baker attendees home in on their interests. This online platform allows bakers to filter events, articles, exhibitors and educational sessions to their interests, goals and challenges.  

“With already 850 registered exhibitors and so many halls it can be a challenge to find what you’re looking for,” Seidemann said. “We want to offer visitors a structure. You want to wander and be inspired, of course, but you also have to be structured and organized. I recommend the iba platform. It basically covers all topics of the bakery industry. Visitors find all exhibitors (A-Z) on the platform. Added value is the focus on the iba.TOPICS of the industry. Users can already discover exhibitors’ highlights. In January 2025 there were already more than 150 posts online and we expect 1,000 posts in the coming months. 

“My personal highlight is our recommendation service: All visitors who tell us their interests, during ticketing process or when registering online for platform,  receive recommendations based on their interests, online or by mailing. We take work off visitors’ hands and proactively support them in their research.”

That structure extends to the exhibit halls. Hall 13 and 14 will be a hub for artisan bakery; Hall 15 will cover food trends, ingredients and raw materials; Hall 9 is dedicated to packaging solutions, and Halls 9 – 13 will cover production technology and equipment. With halls organized by processes and topics, attendees can more easily navigate the show.  

In Hall 15, for example, attendees won’t only find exhibitors focused on ingredients and raw materials, but they’ll also discover the new iba.FOOD TRENDS AREA. This is a completely new concept, spread across the entire Hall 15. A boulevard that stretches the length of the hall will feature exhibitors presenting food trends — from raw materials to innovative machines for producing coffee, chocolate, etc. The aim is a holistic approach to food trends, showing global trends as well as regional specialties and innovative food ingredients. 

On the iba.STAGE, attendees will hear from experts on sustainability, food trends and ingredients. 

As the artisan bakery space, Hall 14 will host the iba.FORUM where bakers and experts will share their experiences and best practices surrounding the energy and labor challenges artisan bakers face. Hall 14 will also be the heart of competition at iba. The iba.UIBC Bakers Cup and the iba.UIBC Cup of Confectioners will take place there as well as the newest competitions: a design competition “Bakery of the Future” on visionary shopfitting and the “World Championships of Bread Sommeliers.” 

The Bread Sommeliers program began in 2015 at the National German Bakers Academy in Weinheim, Germany, by Bernd Kütscher, director of the academy. The program aims to elevate bread in the same way wine has beenelevated by sommelier programs. 

“Our vision was to offer a comprehensive training curriculum that would encompass not just the technical aspects of bread but also the history, sensory analysis and cultural dimensions of bread,” Kütscher explained. 

The program has grown, and today it has 279 graduates from 11 countries. At iba 2025, 12 finalists will compete in the championships to showcase their knowledge of techniques, flavors and traditions. 

Innovators in the baking industry will find their own support at iba 2025 at the iba.START UP AREA  in Hall 13, D61. Here, attendees can find national and international startup companies exhibiting and pitching their ideas as well as education.

“We want to not only give them a stage but also support them with networking and education that will help them grow,” Seidemann said. 

As bakers around the world have struggled with rising costs and labor issues, automation and investment has become a go-to solution. The iba.DIGITALISATION AREA in Hall 14, D11 will show bakers what is possible with the use of digital technology. From artisan bakeries to industrial ones, baker attendees will see how many of their current challenges can be supported with the use of digital solutions. 

“We would like to show visitors what a future bakery could look like,” Seidemann said. “We wanted to expand this area from 2023, and we now have seven co-exhibitors to show a shop concept, technical ideas for software, solutions for the oven and what digitalization means for a modern bakery.” 

Despite the challenges facing the industry, 2025 looks to be a good year for bakery, and iba affords a moment for the global industry to come together. Seidemann noted the strong relationships across the industry worldwide, and iba is a place to further strengthen those relationships. 

“The relationships and connections across the industry have deepened over the past few years,” Seidemann said. “Despite rising ingredient costs or trade issues, the United States is a market of great interest to European companies, and the US is No. 7 in exhibitors and No. 6 in visitors at iba. Since 2023, companies I speak to are seeing a deeper connection to their customers and suppliers around the world. It’s a global industry.”