The event was organized by Campus Foundery OWL, the startup center at TH OWL, in collaboration with Future Food Factory OWL. This new format brings together research, startup support, modern infrastructure, and strong partners from industry and commerce. The goal is to help food innovations move more quickly from concept to market.
“Our goal is to provide sustainable support to people with innovative food ideas so they can build successful companies. To achieve this, we combine startup consulting with research, modern infrastructure, and a strong network spanning industry, retail, and manufacturing,” says Tosca Albrecht, director of Campus Foundery OWL.
The festival focused on 19 selected food startups. They presented new foods, beverages, and technological solutions for the food industry. At the same time, companies such as Edeka, Rewe, Dr. Oetker, and other representatives of the food industry took the opportunity to exchange ideas with founders and researchers and to initiate potential collaborations.
Tomorrow Eats was opened by Professor Dr. Stefan Witte, Vice President for Research and Transfer at TH OWL. Together with Tosca Albrecht and Professor Dr. Jan Schneider, Director of the Future Food Factory OWL, he emphasized the importance of close collaboration between academia, entrepreneurship, and industry for successful innovation.
In six keynote presentations, founders and industry experts provided insights into current developments in the food industry. The presentations covered a wide range of topics, from startup stories and brand building to social media and growth, as well as scaling, food trends, and legal issues for growing companies. Speakers included Minever Zevker (Miss Mineva’s), Julia Bakalorz, Fabian Pohl (BubbleTea24), Paul Sürmann, Sergen Kolcu (Krispy Kebab), Max Schulz (ARISE), and Thomas Schellenberg (Lowtails).
Another highlight was the pitch competition, in which six startups presented their business models to a panel of experts. First place went to the startup “fer” by Nina Moritz. The winning team will receive a professionally produced product review video on the FoodSchau YouTube channel. Second place went to “SugrSugr” by Bastian Niemeier, and third place to “Anna’s Nudelmanufaktur” by Anna Wiebe.
With “Taste to Market,” TH OWL is, for the first time, specifically extending its support program to external food startups. Selected teams gain access to personalized coaching, research and laboratory infrastructure, and a network spanning academia, industry, and retail.
“Tomorrow Eats demonstrates what the Future Food Factory OWL stands for: science and entrepreneurial spirit work hand in hand here. Together, we bridge the gap between research and practice so that innovations don’t remain in the lab but offer people real added value,” says Professor Jan Schneider.
Applications for the food incubator are being accepted through October 31, 2026. Those interested can find more information at gruenden@th-owl.de.
The event was held as part of the Start-up Center.NRW @ TH OWL project. The project is co-funded by the European Union and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and supports the development of a sustainable startup culture as well as the transfer of scientific knowledge to innovative companies.
