EATS (the Equipment, Automation & Technology Show for Food & Beverage) returns to McCormick Place in Chicago Oct. 28-30, 2025, with an expanded lineup of immersive, on-floor attractions. 

With three fully functional production lines, EATS Kitchen, dynamic sector stages and the Innovation Awards, this year’s event invites attendees to see, taste, learn and connect.

“We are so excited to welcome the industry to this inaugural EATS edition.  EATS 2025 is engineered to bring every dimension of food and beverage manufacturing to the floor — not just in booths, but through live demonstrations,” says Kristy Meade, vice president, technical events, Messe Frankfurt Inc. “From watching a fully automated production line, to seeing chefs experiment with scale in the EATS Kitchen or being among the first to celebrate breakthrough solutions at the Innovation Awards — this is a show that delivers actionable insight, sensory engagement, and direct access to the future of production.”

With more than 300 exhibiting companies representing the full food and beverage ecosystem — from processing and packaging to robotics, inspection and automation — EATS 2025 is a one-stop destination for sourcing solutions and building partnerships. 

New for 2025, the Software Pavilion will spotlight the digital technologies transforming manufacturing efficiency, traceability and production intelligence. Attendees will discover innovations in MES, ERP, AI-driven quality control, and predictive maintenance— all designed to help producers achieve greater flexibility, transparency and throughput. 

Attendees can see fully functional production lines running live on the show floor, from raw ingredients to finished, packaged goods. Demonstrations include:

• Sliced Pepperoni Line (Managed and sponsored by Epstein): Demonstrates high-speed slicing, portioning and packaging for protein production.
• Blueberry Danish Line (Managed and sponsored by Dennis Group): A complete bakery process, from mixing and proofing to filling, baking and wrapping.
• Fresh Pet Food Line (Managed and sponsored by Gray AES): Focuses on the growing fresh pet food category with full-scale processing and packaging operations. 

Each line integrates real OEM equipment, giving visitors a rare opportunity to observe end-to-end workflow, ask process questions and compare technologies side-by-side.  

The new EATS Kitchen blends culinary creativity with production know-how, bringing top chefs and technologists together for live demos and discussions. Celebrity appearances include Jeff Mauro, Rick Bayless, Dominique Leach and McCullough Kelly-Willis, who will demonstrate how recipes scale from kitchen to commercial line while exploring ingredient functionality, texture management and packaging innovations. The Kitchen’s daily sessions will deliver insight into both R&D and operations teams seeking to translate culinary trends into manufacturable products. 

The EATS Innovation Awards Ceremony, set for Tuesday, Oct. 28 at 12:30 p.m. in Food for Thought Theatre 2 (Booth 1848), celebrates advances across processing, packaging, automation, ingredients and sustainability. 

Finalists will showcase their technologies live before winners are announced across multiple categories, including Best New Product, Most Sustainable Solution and Breakthrough Automation or Processing Technology. 

Two Sector Stages — The Sweet Spot and The Beverage Spot — bring product innovation and production expertise to life. The Sweet Spot explores the latest in sweet goods, snacks and confectionery, with chefs and food technologists leading live demos and discussions on clean-label reformulation, texture and flavor optimization, novel sweeteners and scale-up strategies.

Meanwhile, The Beverage Spot dives into trends and technologies shaping the fast-evolving drink sector, from functional and low-/no-sugar formulations to automation in bottling, processing, and packaging. 

Together, these stages deliver fresh insights, practical takeaways, and direct access to the industry experts driving innovation across two of the most dynamic segments in food and beverage manufacturing. 

Attendees can also participate in: 

• Food for Thought, a series of complimentary, classroom-style presentations held right on the show floor, focus on the ideas and technologies that are driving the future. Topics include workforce best practices, continuous improvement strategies, R&D innovations and business methods.

• The FPSA Women’s Alliance Network Breakfast, featuring Red Circle Honors presentations and keynote Julie Camardo, CEO of Zweigle’s. Happening on Oct. 29, the breakfast will also honor women leaders advancing the industry. Recipients in 2025 include Melissa Reinhart (Rising Star), Mary Mooney (Career Excellence), Elizabeth Cobb (Innovation & Inspiration), Matt Jones (Male Ally) and Esther Codina (Achievement in Developing Women). 

• In Food Safety Training, hosted by the Commercial Food Sanitation and the Meat Institute, attendees will learn best practices for contamination prevention, allergen control and system design optimization through a hybrid format of classroom learnings and an up-close look at the production lines.

“We are excited to welcome the food and beverage industry to EATS this month,” says Chris Lyons, president of the Food Production Solutions Association (FPSA). “At FPSA, our commitment has always been to strengthen and advance every segment of the food and beverage industry. With EATS, we’re creating a platform that connects the entire supply chain — processors, suppliers, engineers and innovators — to exchange ideas, adopt new technologies and move the industry forward together. This event embodies the collaboration and continuous improvement that defines the FPSA community.”