Hosting a first edition: Milling Forum Europe at SILO, from the inside

"The spirit of our tradition is not a place. It is a way of working." With those words, Konstantin Golombek, Managing Director of AGF, opened the very first Milling Forum Europe. He was right. But a spirit needs somewhere to breathe.

From 7 to 9 September 2026, more than 350 milling professionals from across Europe gathered at SILO Brussels for an event that did not exist yet: no previous edition, no reference, no template. Here is how a first edition comes to life, told from the venue that carried it.

The bet of a first edition

A first edition is the most demanding format there is, for the organiser and for the venue alike. No attendance history, no lessons learned, no last year's photos to reassure exhibitors. Everything rests on two things: the organiser's vision and the venue's ability to carry it.

The Arbeitsgemeinschaft Getreideforschung e.V. (AGF), Germany's grain research institution based in Detmold, carried that vision with organising partners Bindewald & Gutting Mühlengruppe and SWISCA. The venue choice landed on a poetic evidence: a forum about grain, in a building built for grain.

The concrete grain silo of our 1930s former brewery wore the event's banner on its facade. It does not get more literal.

Three days, four spaces, one site

The event mobilised several spaces simultaneously, each in a precise role:

• Meudon Hall in plenary configuration: 20+ talks and keynotes under the red lights, from AI in milling to panels on training the millers of tomorrow
• Navy's as exhibition floor: the exhibitor stands (Streckel & Schrader, KMH, Omas, SCHULZ, Ottevanger, 3U Vision and many more), networking breaks and evening dinners, DJ included
• The Panoramic Rooftop for the networking evening: the who's who of European milling at golden hour, overlooking the canal and the skyline
• The Kiosque as a lounge: quieter conversations between sessions

That is the structural advantage of a multi-space site: the format changes atmosphere without participants changing address.

The services you don't see (until they're missing)

An international audience of 350 is not welcomed with a room and chairs. Three services carried the experience:

Simultaneous translation. Interpretation booths installed in the hall allowed sessions to be followed in several languages. A German participant, Denis Privé GmbH, summed it up after the event: "From the mill visit to the catering to the simultaneous translation, an outstanding and perfectly organised international event."

Artfood catering. Three days of coffee breaks, lunches and dinners for 350 people, orchestrated by our in-house partner, with an expo dinner in Navy's every evening.

Integrated AV. Giant screens in the plenary, LED programme totems, stage lighting and video capture: the site's technical infrastructure absorbed the brief without major external rigging.

The excursion that made the difference

The programme included a visit to the Ceres mill (Bindewald & Gutting Mühlengruppe) in Brussels, one of Europe's most modern. Shuttles departed directly from SILO. This pairing of conference venue and industrial site in the same day is one of the arguments that anchored the event in Brussels.

What participants said

The best measure of a first edition is the words of those who lived it.

Wim Delameilleure, Director MEA at SCE Silo Construction & Engineering: "The first edition was a great success. SILO Brussels is the place for flourmillers to meet."

Ottevanger, exhibitor: "We returned from Brussels with useful feedback, new contacts and conversations we look forward to continuing."

Katharina Kammann, KMH: "We did it! The first ever Milling Forum Europe, what an event!"

And even before the doors opened, exhibitors had made SILO the centre of the conversation: more than ten companies spontaneously published their "See you at SILO Brussels" on LinkedIn in the preceding weeks.

What a first edition proves

For organisers considering launching their own industry event, this first edition confirms three principles:

• The venue tells a story or it doesn't. A grain forum in a grain silo is storytelling no marketing budget can buy.
• Multi-space replaces multi-site logistics. Plenary, exhibition, networking and lounge on one site: no internal shuttles, no energy lost in transit.
• International services are prepared upstream. Simultaneous translation, multilingual signage, adapted catering: everything is briefed months ahead, not the night before.

Frequently asked questions

Can SILO host other industry forums of this format?
Yes. The 300-to-500-delegate format over 2 to 3 days with a parallel exhibition matches exactly the Meudon + Navy's combination, extendable to the Rooftop in season.

Is simultaneous translation available for any event?
Yes, interpretation booths are installed in the hall on request and planned at the briefing.

Can industrial site visits be organised from SILO?
Yes. The canal-side location and parking make shuttle departures easy, as for the Ceres mill visit.

How do we replicate this format for our industry?
Send us your brief: we will gladly share the lessons of this first edition.

Your industry could be next

A first edition has no template. It needs visionary organisers and a venue that keeps up. Milling Forum Europe found both in Brussels, and history will record that the first edition was written in a building built on grain.

Is your industry looking for its home? Send your brief: silobrussels.be/en/contact. Reply within 48 hours.

Photos: SILO Brussels, Wim Delameilleure (SCE), Bora Çiçek (AYBAKAR). Thank you to the exhibitors and participants for their images and testimonials.