Platform for start-ups  the iba.START UP AREA

Pioneering spirit meets drive, potential meets promotion, idea meets network. The iba.START UP AREA in Hall 13 is the stage for young, not yet established companies with innovative ideas for the baking industry. Here, pioneers will find the support their products deserve – from people with a passion for the baking industry. ‘We are delighted to be able to implement this exciting area again after the successful premiere in 2023 and to present new ideas, ’ emphasises Susann Seidemann, Head of iba. 

Area for pitches and networking 

The iba.START UP AREA is a complete area for start-ups including a stage and a modern, open community area. The founders present their new ideas here: The spectrum ranges from ordering apps and services to food utilisation. The start-ups will also pitch their business ideas on a stage – every day of the trade fair from Sunday to Wednesday. Each start-up has two minutes for this. Before and after this, there will be the opportunity to network at the iba.START UP AREA.  

Founders' ideas and products for the baking industry 

Pre-order and pay – the tech start-up from Aachen presents how an app ensures a fast ordering process: The Snaggit app eliminates waiting times, optimises processes and thus increases efficiency. 

Finding qualified and motivated skilled workers and trainees from Southeast Asia – the German agency Go German helps with this. The service provider takes on the placement work, including applicant selection, arranges intensive courses, helps with visa applications and provides support in dealing with the authorities.  

The Swiss start-up ProSeed will be presenting how food waste can be turned into valuable products. Using a new stabilisation technique, barley flakes are produced from brewing by-products, which are then processed into flour or protein concentrate – from which a protein baguette, for example, is then baked.  

And the Brazilian-British start-up Fonte Ingredientes shows an innovative approach to reducing food waste – by keeping food fresh for longer. 

iba is an important platform for start-ups – sustainability is a recurring theme 

Selected start-ups from iba 2023 will report on their experiences since then in a panel on 21 May. The topic: How have they developed since the last iba in 2023? Has participating at iba 2023 helped them? And if so, how?  Among others, WeCarry, the winner of the iba.START UP AWARD 2023, will explain how iba as a platform has advanced them and how its business model with reusable bread bags for bakeries has developed since then. Peerox, a spin-off of the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging, will also be on the panel with ‘Maddox’, a digital assistant for production. Reusable gloves instead of disposable plastic? The start-up HY5 has developed a glove made from organic cotton fabric that supports sales staff. The system provider FairCup focuses on sustainability and environmental protection – with its efficient reusable system as an environmentally friendly alternative, for example to coffee-to-go. 

Last call to register: Participation at iba.START UP AREA still possible 

Creative start-ups can present themselves to the public and register: Registration is possible for national and international start-ups that have newly developed or significantly improved products, processes or services. The following criteria have to apply: The exhibiting company must be less than 10 years old (founded in 2015 or later). The company employs a maximum of 50 employees and the annual balance sheet total or annual turnover is a maximum of 10 million euros. Applications can still be made at iba.START UP AREA. 

Support opportunities for start-ups 

Apply for financial aid from the state: Participation by companies based and operating in Germany is subsidised by the state. The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) supports young companies with the ‘Young Innovators’ trade fair programme. As the leading trade fair in Germany, iba has been selected for the funding programme. The funding application is available under the Young Innovators trade fair programme

Voting wanted: iba.START UP AWARD

It's worth taking part: the exhibiting start-ups can win the iba.START UP AWARD. Visitors to the trade fair can select their favourites in advance: they can vote online on the iba platform starting from Monday, May 5. Every registered visitor can cast up to ten votes per start-up pitch. These ten votes will be used to rank the start-ups individually. Three goodie bags including tickets for iba 2027 will be drawn from all visitors who take part in the voting.  

The presentation and celebration of the iba.START UP AWARD will take place on Wednesday, 21 May 2025 at 3.30 pm on the stage of the iba.START UP AREA (Hall 13).