We are taking a break in 2026

The EuroBean Chocolate Festival will not take place in 2026.

After several intensive festival years, and especially after the 2025 edition during Chemnitz’s year as European Capital of Culture, we are taking time to evaluate, consolidate and further develop the format. Since its beginnings, EuroBean has been more than a chocolate market: it is a meeting place for chocolate makers, cacao producers, professionals, curious visitors, families and everyone who wants not only to taste bean-to-bar chocolate, but to understand it.

Taking a break is therefore not a decision against the festival. It is a decision in favour of its quality.

Photo: Susanne Grund

Why a break?

EuroBean is built on encounters, direct exchange and a distinctive atmosphere. This quality does not happen automatically. It requires careful preparation, a reliable economic foundation, strong partnerships and enough space for new ideas.

The 2025 edition at the Industriemuseum Chemnitz was special in many respects: as part of the Capital of Culture year, with international chocolate makers, a diverse supporting programme, tastings, talks, family activities and many conversations about cacao, origin, craft, fairness and enjoyment.

For that reason, now is the right moment not simply to continue at the same pace, but to pause and examine how EuroBean can be developed meaningfully in the coming years.

What remains?

The core of EuroBean remains unchanged:

• bean-to-bar chocolate at the centre
• direct contact between visitors and chocolate makers
• transparency around origin, raw materials and production
• attention to fair and sustainable value chains
• a curated festival experience based on quality rather than randomness

EuroBean should continue to be a place where chocolate is not only sold, but explained, discussed and experienced. This attitude has shaped the festival since 2016.

Looking ahead

Although there will be no festival in 2026, we are working on perspectives for the years ahead. We are not only considering a classic continuation, but also new forms: smaller curated formats, collaborations with local partners, or a possible “EuroBean on the Road” that could bring the festival’s idea to special places.

What matters most is not the size of the format, but the fit: with the bean-to-bar community, with the chocolate makers, with visitors and with the values EuroBean stands for.

Thank you

We would like to thank all chocolate makers, partners, supporters, volunteers and visitors who have accompanied and shaped EuroBean over the past years.

2026 will be a year without a festival, but not a year without EuroBean.

We will use this time to prepare the next steps carefully.