INVENTIVE START-UPS AND SMES WILL BE KEY PLAYERS AT BEER&FOOD ATTRACTION IN THE INNOVATION DISTRICT TOGETHER WITH EXHIBITING COMPANIES’ MOST INNOVATIVE PROJECTS

·       At Rimini Expo Centre from 15^th to 17^th February 2026, Beer&Food Attraction will dedicate an entire exhibition area to innovation: the Innovation District, featuring companies, start-ups and inventive SMEs engaged in Research and Development for the out-of-home channel and exhibitors' innovative projects

·       16 Italian and foreign start-ups are ready to present technologies, services and new business models to innovate the Food & Beverage sector

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Rimini, 9^th February 2026 – Innovation as a strategic lever for growth in the Bar & Beverage Industry will find a special structured area at Italian Exhibition Group’s Beer&Food Attraction trade show. At Rimini Expo Centre from 15^th to 17^th February, the event will devote a special exhibition area to innovation: the Innovation District, an authentic district designed to give visibility to companies that invest in Research & Development, thus contributing to technological progress and the continuous improvement of the Out-of-Home channel.

The area will host innovative companies, start-ups and SMEs engaged in developing technologies, services and solutions able to impact the sector’s evolution and will give visibility to all those exhibitors that have submitted their most innovative projects.

The Beer&Tech Arena, located in Hall D3 and one of Beer&Food Attraction’s cultural hubs, will be part of this ecosystem. Here, beer culture will meet technological innovation in an in-depth exploration in the form of meetings and training sessions organised in collaboration with universities, consortia and industry associations.

Beer&Food Attraction will also consolidate its role as an incubator of innovation by confirming the Start-Up Area within the Innovation District, created in collaboration with ANGI – National Association of Young Innovators and the Italian Trade Agency (ITA). The area will host 16 young companies, 3 of which from Austria, Germany and Romania, ranging from start-ups to innovative SMEs, all engaged in developing technological solutions, services and business models for the sector.

LORENZO CAGNONI AWARDS: SPACE FOR NEW ENTREPRENEURAL IDEAS FOR OUT-OF-HOME

The role of the Innovation District as an observatory on the sector’s future will be further strengthened by the Lorenzo Cagnoni Awards, which will be back at Beer&Food Attraction for their second edition. The awards are given to the most innovative solutions for the Out-of-Home channel and involve exhibiting companies and selected start-ups called upon to present projects that can make a concrete impact on the Food & Beverage industry’s evolution.

The sectors in which the start-ups are engaged range from food tech to production waste valorisation, the digitalisation of services for bars and restaurants, and the new frontiers of beverage. 6 projects will be awarded, one for each of the categories Beer, Spirits, Soft Drinks and Low & No, Food, Technology, Services and Digital Innovation. The start-ups in the Innovation District, an expression of a new entrepreneurship that is helping to redesign processes, products and services for the out-of-home sector, will also be competing. The projects involved will be assessed by a Jury composed of representatives from the institutional, academic and industrial worlds. Jury members will include Annamaria Pastore, head of private sector relations at the FAO with extensive international experience in sustainability and development issues; Carlo Corazza, Director of the European Parliament Offices in Italy; Alessandro Coppola, Director of Innovation and Technology Transfer at ENEA; Domenico Nuzzo, researcher at the National Research Council; and Pasquale Pignalosa, expert in subsidised finance and business development at Invitalia. The panel will be completed by Alessandro Pastore, entrepreneur and Executive Director for Business Development at the Bologna Business School.

PRESS CONTACT ITALIAN EXHIBITION GROUP:
Head of media relation & corporate communication: Elisabetta Vitali; press office manager: Marco Forcellini, Pierfrancesco Bellini; press office coordinator: Luca Paganin; international press office coordinator: Silvia Giorgi; press office specialist: Nicoletta Evangelisti, Mirko Malgieri; media@iegexpo.it

MEDIA AGENCY BEER&FOOD ATTRACTION - BBTECH EXPO:
Mind the Pop - Martina Vacca: martina@mindthepop.it, mob. +39 339 748 5994; Fabrizio Raimondi: fabrizio@mindthepop.it, mob. +39 335 389 848; Stefano Chiossi: stefano@mindthepop.it, mob. + 39 388 739 4358.

This press release contains forecast elements and estimates that reflect the management´s current opinions (´forward-looking statements´), particularly regarding future management performance, realization of investments, cash flow trends and the evolution of the financial structure. For their very nature, forward-looking statements have a component of risk and uncertainty, as they depend on the occurrence of future events. The effective results may differ (even significantly) from those announced, due to numerous factors, including, only by way of example: food service market and tourist flow trends in Italy, gold and jewellery market trends, green economy market trends; the evolution of raw material prices; general macroeconomic conditions; geopolitical factors and evolutions in the legislative framework. Moreover, the information contained in this release, does not claim to be complete, and has not been verified by independent third parties. Forecasts, estimates and objectives contained herein are based on the information available to the Company as at the date of this release.