BIOFACH AMERICA -- All-Organic Trade Show to Premiere Next Year in Atlanta

In what is a game-changing development for the future of the organic food industry, BIOFACH, which puts on the world’s biggest organic trade show each February in Germany, as well as other major shows in Asia and the Middle East, has just announced that it will soon be hosting an annual all-organic show in the U.S.

Called BIOFACH AMERICA, the inaugural event will take place June 2-4, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. It will be 100% focused on promoting organic, and organic brands will not be sharing floor space with “natural” or GMO 2.0 companies, something that has been a point of contention at recent Expo West shows.

The other day, I spoke with Bill Ingwersen, CEO of NuernbergMesse North America, the entity that oversees BIOFACH AMERICA, and asked him all about next year’s event.

— Why did you decide to do a U.S. show and what prompted this move?

BIOFACH AMERICA always had a presence, or section, at Natural Products Expo East, and last year in Philadelphia, we brought in 47 companies from around the world.

With that show being canceled, it forced us to really ask the question: are people getting what they need at other shows or is there a true need for an organic one?

We concluded that there was, in fact, a real need for a dedicated, all-organic platform in the U.S.

— Why did you pick Atlanta and what went into that process?

Since this is a U.S. show and not a regional one, people will have to travel, regardless of which city we chose. After many conversations with industry executives, it became clear that we had to make it an affordable show for everyone, including farmers.

Atlanta has the world’s largest airport, has an ample supply of low-cost hotel rooms and is a very energetic, accessible city that has great infrastructure. In addition, it can support our growth as we move forward.

Also, being able to serve an organic lunch to our attendees was a real hot button topic. All the catering coming out of the Atlanta Convention Center will be organic for the show, and if a city could not guarantee this, that was an immediate disqualification.

Third-party vendors, such as Starbucks or Chick-fil-A, who have a presence in the convention center and long-standing agreements in place, will not be mandated to only serve organic. But when it comes to the catering that the convention center oversees, that will be all organic.

— What are your standards for the show?

Every product that is presented at a company’s booth must be USDA certified organic or carry the organic certification from an IFOAM accredited body. For natural cosmetics, certifications such as COSMOS or Ecocert are accepted.

If a brand does not have any of these certifications, it can submit its products and ingredient list to our admission team for approval.

— Are you concerned that BIOFACH AMERICA is only a few months after Expo West 2025?

This is not a concern at all. In the trade show world, three months is a long time, and it is a good cushion after Expo West. If you look at the food shows around the world, there is at least one per month somewhere. Also, BIOFACH AMERICA is a differentiated offering than Expo West.

— For organic brands, what will they be getting at your show that they will not be getting at Expo West?

BIOFACH is a global brand, and our name is even stronger outside of the U.S. As a result, we have real interest from many of our international brands and buyers for BIOFACH AMERICA.

But we are not trying to re-create the German show in Atlanta. This is about providing a platform for people who care about the organic industry in the U.S. and want to make it stronger and more competitive.

— What about programming and education?

For us, education and networking are much more important than how many booths we can sell. If people experience a sense of community and believe that this show is critical to the industry’s future, they will feel a strong need to be a part of it and will want to exhibit. This is exactly what we have seen at our other shows, and something powerful happens when everyone is like-minded and comes together with a shared purpose.

In terms of exactly what the educational and breakout sessions will be, we are still figuring that out. We want to be working with as many thought leaders as possible, all with the goal of giving every aspect of the industry a voice.

For example, right now, we are in talks with the organization that trains organic certifiers and want to give them a platform to develop and grow.

If people have ideas, they should reach out to us. We’d love to speak with them. Our goal is to make this a community event for the entire organic industry.

With gratitude, Max Goldberg, Founder