By Bernhard Reichenbach, Chefredakteur

If you weren’t there, you missed out”. This was the tenor among exhibitors and visitors at the packaging show FachPack 2021, which recently took place in Nuremberg/Germany, and which we look back on in the “Packaging” section. By all accounts, there is a considerable pent-up demand for personal (trade fair) encounters, and thus the joy of direct contacts on site was felt everywhere.

The joy of (re)establishing personal contacts should also be evident at the ingredients trade fair Fi & Hi Europe 2021, which will take place in Frankfurt/Germany from 30 November to 2 December. The event, about which we provide advance information in this issue, focuses on natural and sustainable products in particular.

The company Felix Koch Offenbach Couleur und Karamel GmbH, which we present in our sp portrait in the “Ingredients” section, will also be represented at Fi & Hi Europe. The family-owned company is a renowned partner in the development and production of customized caramel products and other products for the international food industry. Another interesting article in this section shows the potential of novel confectionery coatings based on isomalt.

There is also interesting information in the “Technology” section, where we address the problem of biofilms and deposits on surfaces that convey liquids, such as in pipelines. Hasytec company has specialized in its solution. By means of ultrasonic methods developed in-house, they act against microorganisms that form the basis for the settlement of biofilms and deposits.