By Dr. Bernhard Reichenbach, Chefredakteur

Things always turned out well.” Following this Cologne motto for life, Koelnmesse recently held its ISM and ProSweets Cologne trade shows – despite all the adversities. And the organizers were satisfied at the end: For the approximately 200 exhibitors, ProSweets Cologne had proven to be a reliable industry get-together. Although the visitors criticized the lack of various exhibitors, and the companies present complained about the moderate number of visitors, the high quality of the contacts was praised on all sides. The Cologne event is a focal point of this issue.

Another focus is the “Ingredients” section: In our “sp portrait” series we, this time, present the milling company Müller´s Mühle in Gelsenkirchen/Germany, which has been active in the field of pulses and rice for more than 125 years. Among other things, the company supplies manufacturers of baked goods and snacks with flours made from lentils or chickpeas for protein-rich trend products without meat.

An essential part of the “Technology” section is an interview with Christian Hofsommer, Area Sales Manager at sorting solutions provider Tomra Food. He reports on the challenges in confectionery production, especially in the manufacture of fruit gums and gum arabic products.

The area of “Packaging” is not neglected either: We show the current trends in the packaging of confectionery, baked goods and snacks. It can be seen that the issue of sustainability is becoming increasingly important in consumers’ purchasing decisions.