Joost Samyn, Belgian, joined Celli Group in April 2021 after 30 years’ experience within the draught beer business. Since January 2022 he is the Regional Business Director WeMeA and in charge of the different branches in Germany, France, and Spain. Together with a great team he’s trying to grow the draught drinks market for beer and also for non-alcoholic drinks and water in the area.

Francesca Bellucci is the Global Sustainability Director, her role focuses on making sure Sustainability is on top of the agenda for Equipment, Services and Packaging development. She is also in charge of Sustainability communication inside and outside the company. Francesca joined Sidel in 2019 after 20 years of experience in Marketing and Market Research with P&G, where she led brands like Max Factor and Pringles and managed the Direct to Consumer Marketing team. She also gained a direct customer facing experience from her experience leading the Shopper Marketing team. Francesca holds a degree in Physics from La Sapienza University of Rome.

Peter Espersen is CEO and the founder of HYDRACT in Denmark Peter has a background as a bachelor of mechanical engineering with extensive experience from the OEM industry. He is the inventor and entrepreneur behind the development of the patented water hydraulic HYDRACT process valve, which is a sustainable alternative to traditional process valves powered by compressed air.

Tommaso is an industrial biotechnologist with a PhD from the University Modena and Reggio Emilia where he researched intraspecific hybridization to produce novel winemaking yeast strains. After several years of research into the practical aspects of biotransformation, including aroma and flavour development, in alcohol, lactic or acetic fermentations, and a string of peer-reviewed papers behind him, he joined the AEB Group, in 2017. The focus of his responsibilities today is leading AEB’s NEXT business unit to drive eco-biotechnologies in cross-category beverage innovation. These include new ready-to-drink (RTD) alcohol beverages with enhanced taste, novel fermented drinks, and functional RTDs, as well as low and no alcohol, less sugar, and fewer calorie variants.

Michaela holds a Dipl.-Ing. degree Brewing and Beverage Technology from the Technical University of Munich, Weihenstephan and a PhD in Brewing from Heriot Watt University, Scotland. Michaela is finalizing her EMBA Master thesis “Exploring success factors of Women in Leadership”. She received the Institute of Brewing and Distilling ‘Young Brewer of the Year Award’ in 2008 and the ‘IBD Cambridge Prize’ in 2010 for “outstanding academic achievements in brewing science”. Following internships and academic exchange programs at UC Davis (USA), Griffith University and Carlton United Breweries (Australia) Michaela commenced her brewing industry career in the UK with Molson-Coors as Innovation Manager and then as Supply Chain lead for the Molson-Coors International business. In 2011 she joined SABMiller to lead the regional technical Innovation agenda in Europe. In 2016 Michaela joined AB-InBev as Global Director leading the technology development for non-alcoholic beer and beverages, by-product valorization and various start-ups within the AB-InBev business. Since July 2020 Michaela leads the AB-InBev Zone Innovation and Technology Center with responsibility for product, process, and packaging optimization and innovation for beer and beyond beer in Europe. Since 2015 Michaela is the Chair of the IBD International Section and has developed the IBD Masterclass format to provide trusted knowledge to IBD members across Europe

In 2019, Johnny Johnson decided to ditch the booze after getting fed up with the sluggish feeling he got the morning after drinking a few beers. After a couple of weeks of not drinking any alcohol he started to feel great. He was sleeping better, exercising more and his mental and physical health improved. There were no negatives. It was a revelation and one he predicted would take the world by storm. But he missed the taste of his favourite tipple, so set out and explored the world of alcohol-free beers. Not being overly impressed by the options available, he made it his mission to create a new alcohol-free beer, which not only tasted delicious and looked great but was also aligned with his new health goals. 10 months later UNLTD. Beer launched! Low calories, rich in vitamins B6 & B12, low in sugar, vegan friendly and gluten free, UNLTD. truly is 'The Beer with Benefits'.

With over 15 years of Sales & Marketing experience, in 2017, as a result of an innovative project awarded by MBA Executive of the MIP Politecnico di Milano, Eugenio launches MeMento, the first Mediterranean Distilled Non-Alcoholic Blend designed to be mixed in cocktails.

Eugenio is an active member of the Low and No ABV community, and with his brand participates as a speaker to the mist influential world industry summits.

Luke Boase is the founder of Lucky Saint, the UK’s award-winning 0.5% Superior Unfiltered Lager. The brand launched in October 2018, however the story of creating this exceptional alcohol-free beer started much, much, earlier.

Way back in 1842, in the city of Pilsen in the Czech Republic, a revolution happened. Following years of sub-standard beer, a group of residents undertook to brew their own beer. That beer was unlike any beer-style that had been brewed before: golden in colour, crisp, dry and refreshing. Pilsner was born. And it has gone on to influence 80% of the beer we drink today, what we know as lager.

Fast forward to 2016, and the world has a drinking problem. So Luke had a thought: what if all the occasions on which he drank lager, could come with... or without alcohol?

Even in 2016, this was an unlikely idea. While alcohol-free beer was nothing new, it had never gained wide appeal. But against the advice of many, including one particular industry leader who suggested making fizzy sodas would be a better idea, he set out to discover just how hard it would be to brew a great tasting alcohol-free lager. And then build a brand that would empower people to drink it.

He spent the next two years working with six different brewers in three different countries, with this singular mission in mind. Ultimately joining forces with a 400 year old brewery in Bavaria who shared his passion for brewing beer of the highest quality.

Lucky Saint is a 0.5% Superior Unfiltered Lager. It’s brewed in accordance with German Purity Law, Reinheitsgebot, using the four natural ingredients you are supposed to find in a classic pilsner: Bavarian spring water, pilsner malt, Hallertau hops, single use yeast. That’s it, there’s no flavourings, no additives, no adjuncts. It is fermented for two weeks, and cold stored (or ‘lagered’) for a further four weeks, just like that original pilsner in 1842. And then it’s left unfiltered to retain as much flavour and character as possible. They call it heritage brewing for modern drinking.

Lucky Saint launched in October 2018 and has achieved wide success. It is listed leading on-trade accounts including 30 Michelin starred restaurants, some of the best bars in the world and some of the most brilliant local pubs. It is regularly voted the best alcohol-free lager, it was welcomed as the British Beer and Pub Association’s first alcohol free member and is on the journey to be accredited as a B-corporation.

Luke is driven by an entrepreneurial, and sometimes obsessive, curiosity for solving problems. Having worked across a range of industries from advertising, through fund management to oil & gas, solving the world’s drinking problem became that obsession in 2016. He lives in London with his wife and two young daughters.

Barny started making cider in 2002 and it wasn’t long before he outgrew the shed resulting in Sandford Orchards moving into The Cider Works in Crediton,one of the oldest working cider mills in the country. A true believer in the history of cider making, Sandford Orchards believes Sander has a huge potential to grow as a delight for the modern cider drinker of today. A firm advocate of traditional cider making methods but experimental with innovation especially in new fermentations.

In 2016 Rob Fink founded the world’s first company to focus entirely on brewing Non-Alcoholic craft beer – Big Drop Brewing Co. As a lawyer with zero brewing experience, he teamed-up with an experimental brewer (Johnny Clayton from Wild Beer) and applied left-field fermenting techniques that meant no alcohol needed to be extracted from the end product to meet the required maximum 0.5% ABV. Less than 4 years later he is selling over 1 million bottles of 0.5% ABV beer annually around the world (eg Tesco in the UK, LCBO in Canada, Systembolaget in Sweden, Alco in Finland, NTUC Finest in Singapore etc). His beers have picked up 26 major international beer awards including twice being judged the ‘World’s Best’ at the World Beer Awards, Gold at the US Open Beer Championship and, the ‘Holy Grail’ of any non-alcoholic drink, winning medals against full-strength rivals in blind tastings. In 2019 Rob was a keynote at the Brewers of Europe Forum and the International Beer Strategies conference.

Erik is the Director of Operations at Sahlins Brygghus is the most innovative craft beverage producer in Sweden with an expressive portfolio of premium brands and products. Our mission is to bring beautiful and innovative products to discerning drinkers and curious consumers.

With over 16 years’ experience in various executive positions at Mast-Jägermeister, Marcus Thieme now brings a wealth of experience that fits perfectly with BrewDog's aspirations and ambitious expansion plans. The focus of his responsibilities are to drive growth in key international markets pushing the company forward into strong positions supported by his strategical decisions and strong background in sales and marketing.