Interpack Expo, 2017
Sold-out packaging show in Germany to feature 400,000 square feet of exhibitor space dedicated to the baking and snack industries.

CHICAGO — For bakers and snack producers, managing their attendance at one of the world’s largest packaging shows is as simple as one, two, three and four — and possibly a few more. Those are the exhibition halls that will concentrate mainly on the baking, snack and confectionery industries at interpack, scheduled for May 4-11, 2017, in Düsseldorf, Germany.

Bernd Jablonowski, Messe Düsseldorf
Bernd Jablonowski, global portfolio director, packaging and processing for Messe Dusseldorf GmbH

The massive packaging show spans over 19 exhibit halls, of which four of them — again, Halls 1 through 4 — focus on the baking and snack industry and will total about 400,000 square feet in exhibit space, said Bernd Jablonowski, global portfolio director, packaging and processing for Messe Dusseldorf GmbH. He spoke during the jam-packed Pack Expo held in Chicago. Many interpack exhibitors, including those businesses involving packaging materials and so-called horizontal companies whose packaging expertise spreads across all industries, also will be present in the other remaining halls.

For months, the upcoming show has been sold out as far as exhibit space, Mr. Jablonowski added. The current exhibitor waiting list includes requests for about 140,000 square feet. That amount doubles when it comes to existing exhibitors who didn’t get all they requested when show organizers had to shoehorn people into the center, Mr. Jablonowski said. In fact, organizers for the show said demand was so high that they had to trim many 2017 exhibitors’ booth space by a total of 150,000 square feet to fit into the Messe Düsseldorf complex.

Interpack Expo, 2014
In the past, about one-third of interpack attendees came from the Americas.

In the past, about one-third of attendees came from the Americas, Mr. Jablonowski said, although the bulk of them are from Germany and Europe. In previous years, the triennial show attracted more than 2,700 exhibitors from more 58 countries. At the last show in 2014, 175,000 visitors from around the world participated in the event.

The organizers stressed that attendees might want to register and book hotels as soon as possible because rooms are going at a premium, or in some cases, not available in the immediate area. Tickets to the show include free public transportation around Düsseldorf.