Exclusive: ISM and ProSweets show preview interview

Sabine Schommer (Director ISM), pictured right, recently, alongside Guido Hentschke (Director ProSweets Cologne) is part of our Q&A at this year's World Confectionery Conference. Pic: ISM
With the leading ISM and ProSweets events just around the corner in Cologne, editor Neill Barston meets up with their respective directors, Sabine Schommer and Guido Hentschke, to talk about major trends for these two key linked shows
As the organising team behind ISM and ProSweets explains, there’s a genuine buzz surrounding the upcoming major trade shows that are combining forces stronger than ever. One of the greatest assets of these flagship Koelnmesse events has been an overall ability to dynamically cover the full spectrum of the global confectionery and snacks industries.
With the sector facing a significant degree of tests including ongoing inflationary pressures on supply chains, as well as ingredients and logistics costs rising, devising shared solutions is increasingly vital and will be fully addressed in Cologne next month. (watch our exclusive video below).

The two core events, which are being hosted in their traditional Koelnmesse setting between 2-5 February, form part of its “Sweet Week’ focus, showcasing innovations, sector content and offering networking with international colleagues. Being the first major confectionery and snacks events of the international calendar, it occupies a critical position in the retail buying landscape, setting the tone for the remainder of the year for both finished products, as well as insights into equipment and ingredients markets.
As previously reported, Confectionery Production will once again be on hand as a media partner for the global trade fair covering the latest trends, and reporting on new innovations to emerge from these international showcases.
With last year’s ISM attracting more than 1,350 exhibitors, and more than 30,000 visitors, and 13,000 attending its sister ProSweets show featuring more than 240 companies, it was clear that post Covid-19, the demand for major industry gatherings is very much here to stay. Notably, the combined shows have moved to considerably extend their education and interactive programme over its four-day schedule, which features a key array of talks relating to major topics within packaging, processing, and finished product trends.
Hallendurchblick, Halle 10.2This is reinforced by the positioning of Hall 10.1 focusing on major themes of Packaging Materials and Sweet & Snackable Ingredients, which are both crucial elements within supply chains. Another future significant highlight will be placed front and centre with its new product showcase, serving as a focal exhibition point for innovative new products, start-ups and trending snacks. Furthermore, the popular demonstration zone of ISM known as Lab5 is to be extended with interactive formats like the ‘live sweets creation,’ where the production of sweets can be experienced up close. There are additional networking elements including opportunities to socialise at the event’s GISMO Bar on 4 February.
Breaking new ground
Speaking exclusively to Confectionery Production, Sabine Schommer, director of ISM, and Guido Hentschke, leading the ProSweets team, the pair enthused that the close-knit events have worked hard to combine effectively to deliver one of its most compelling editions to date. “We are really thrilled about ISM, as the space that we thought we would need has been sold out for weeks.
All the halls we’re using are full to the last square centimetre. “So, we’ve opened up the boulevard again as well, and this too is almost sold-out, and we’re overwhelmed with the response,” explained Sabine on the reaction to the event, which she said had seen a rise in smaller businesses coming forward at a comparatively later stage, as well as an increase in bookings from groups of sector businesses. This is all clearly helping forge considerable excitement surrounding this year’s show, which she felt would translate strongly into the wealth of innovation being showcased across its floors.
Significantly, ISM is set to welcome an impressive tally of over 1,500 exhibitors from around the world at this year’s event, which includes some notable global pavilions as far and wide as China, the US, Brazil, Belgium and the UK. This year, a total of 70 nations will be represented around the halls and boulevards of the Koelnmesse trade fair grounds, making for a notably engaging atmosphere.
“Since 2006, we have had our Sweet Week as part of the event in order to emphasise the synergies between the two trade fairs and make it clear to the participants and promote the advantages that everyone has in visiting Cologne at this time.
“The two events represent the entire supply chain, and we can give answers better together than if they had been single trade fairs, and we can address the challenges of the industry, as we can look at the complete angle from the raw materials, the processing and packaging and finished product, with the visitors from ISM from the retail trade,” added Sabine of the combined events.
As director of ProSweets, her colleague Guido notes that while there have indeed been challenges over the past few years surrounding the pandemic that have impacted its events, he believed there were plenty of reasons for the sector to be genuinely enthused by the prospect of the latest edition of the show. He explained: “I took over ProSweets in 2021, and I realised quickly that we had such a big opportunity with this event – there’s no show like it in the world where you have producers there that are the customers of the supplier industry.
“So we thought that we needed to strengthen it through mentioning ISM and ProSweets together, and vice versa, and that we must attract attendees such as plant managers and product developers to the show – this is exactly what we’re doing this year.
“For the first time, we are launching the Sweet Week Production Summit, showing our audience how to use AI for efficient and sustainable production, giving best practice examples, and are proactively matching producers with our exhibitors,” he noted, explaining additional features such as a newly-devised talks and tasting stage next to its established experts area, and a keenly-anticipated return of the ProSweets Party, are set to be among its stand-out elements for this year.
Moreover, as Sabine reveals, the shows’ joint area for tastings is destined to prove a key interactive highlight drawing social media influencers, and live unveiling of new products creating a sense of occasion at the show that is anticipated to be of broad appeal across the industry. As she explains, visitors can check out live podcasts and will be invited to share in the experience of new products being seen for the first time, and expressing their views in what promises to be a dynamic and engaging finished product element of the combined shows

A diverse array of confectionery, snacks and biscuits were on display at this year’s ISM, alongside its sister ProSweets show. Pictures: Neill Barston
Exploring major trends
According to the management team, its educational programme, which has expanded significantly over the past couple of years, has now become an integral part of the events. As the pace of growth and change within the sector continues at a significant rate, being able to reflect on wider developments affecting the entire sector is considered of critical importance.
“Our experts stage is a focal point of our trade shows – we have our knowledge partners, Innova Market Insights and Euromonitor offering trends presentations that are among our best visited lectures, as well as panel discussions on sustainable cocoa for instance and palm oil, as well as big topic inputs from ProSweets,” adds Sabine of this year’s content – which the duo acknowledges reflects major concerns in the market, spanning everything from rising energy and ingredients costs, through to shortage of labour, increased regulation, and addressing a reportedly slow rate of take-up for digitalisation within production processes in many companies’ operations.
As Guido adds, its latest agenda has been devised by closely working with its advisory board and industry representatives to drill down to the most significant issues facing the sector.
“For our platform this year, some of the leading trends that are driving innovation include a starting point of sustainable packaging and ingredients, which have gained significant traction, as well as another focus on chocolate alternatives, and the recent surge in cocoa prices.
“This also includes cutting edge raw materials for chocolate production, and chocolate made without cocoa, and cocoa boosters that can reduce cocoa usage by up to 30 per cent. These are very practical issues that will be discussed in how to help solve problems for producers,” he observes, explaining there will be further presentations on delivering machinery efficiency and cost savings, as we as health and wellbeing products being on the core topic areas, reflecting consumers’ heightened desire for a greater range of better-for-you options.

prosweets 2023 was a shortened edition in Cologne, but will be back at full strength for 2024. Pic: Neill Barston
Concluding on this year’s events, Sabine adds that there’s a real sense of momentum about the 2025 editions of the shows, that place meaningful meetings right at its heart. She adds: “I think events such as ours are something that you cannot do without – this was a learning from the pandemic in that we found digital platforms as a solution, but before this, we had underestimated the importance of the casual meeting, those accidental meetings in the aisle which you’d miss out on. “You might stop in front a stand where you might see someone and then you speak to the business before you – and learn something that you hadn’t realised you were looking for. All these things can’t be rendered by a digital platform. “So, if you’re a player in sweets and snacks business, then you can’t dispense with ISM. You will meet everyone here in Cologne – we’re human and we prefer doing business with people that you have actually met in person.