Programme
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Monday, February 23, 2026
18.00 - 19.00 – Registration and poster mounting
19.00 - 21.00 – Welcome reception
Tuesday, February 24, 2026
08.30 – 09.30 - Introductory Session
Chair: Prof. Luc DE VUYST (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium)
08.30 - 9.30 – Welcome
Prof. Luc DE VUYST, Chairman (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium)
Prof. Peter SCHELKENS, Vice-Rector Innovation and Valorization (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium)
Prof. Christophe COURTIN, Vice-chairman (KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium)
08.45 - 9.30 – Plenary Lecture
Prof. Friedrich HEINRICH (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium)
History of sourdough production
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09.30 – 12.10 – Plenary Session
Session 1 – Microbiology and biodiversity of the sourdough microbiota
Chair: Prof. Marco GOBBETTI (Free University of Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy)
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09.30 - 10.10 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Michael GÄNZLE (University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada)
Lactic acid bacteria in sourdough
10.10 – 10.50 – Coffee break and poster viewing
10.50 - 11.30 – Keynote lecture
Dr. Delphine SICARD (INRAE, Montpellier, France)
Yeasts in sourdough
11.30 – 12.10 – Keynote lecture
Speaker to be confirmed
12.10 - 13.30 – Lunch break
13.30 – 14.30 - Oral presentations (3 presentations; each 15 min plus 5 min of discussion)
Session 1 – Microbiology and biodiversity of the sourdough microbiota
Chair: Prof. Emanuele ZANNINI (Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy)
14.30 – 16.30 – Pleanary Session
Session 2 – Biochemistry, physiology, genetics, and molecular biology of sourdough microorganisms
Chair: Prof. Michael GÄNZLE (University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada)
14.30 - 15.10 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Marco GOBBETTI (Free University of Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy)
Functional robustness of LAB–yeast interactions in sourdough: lessons from synthetic microbiota design
15.10 – 15.50 – Coffee break and poster viewing
15.50 – 16.30 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Caiti HEIL (North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA)
Genetic and phenotypic diversity of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in sourdough
16.30 – 18.10 – Oral presentations (5 presentations; each 15 min plus 5 min of discussion)
Session 2 – Biochemistry, physiology, genetics, and molecular biology of sourdough microorganisms
Chair: Dr. Delphine SICARD (INRAE, Montpellier, France
19.15 – Walk departure to the Market Place of Brussels
19.30 – Beer reception in the Town Hall of Brussels
Wednesday, February 25, 2026
09.00 – 11.30 – Plenary Session
Session 3 – Fermentation and process technology of sourdough and bread productions
Chair: Prof. Ömer SIMSEK (Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey)
09.00 - 09.40 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Jan DELCOUR (KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium)
Composition and structure of cereal, pseudocereal and alternative flours
09.40 - 10.20 – Keynote lecture
Dr. Peter STOLZ (Böcker, Minden, Germany)
Sourdough fermentation from an industrial bread production perspective
10.20 – 10.50 – Coffee break and poster viewing
10.50 - 11.30 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Christophe COURTIN (KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium)
Bread dough fermentation and baking
11.30 - 12.30 – Oral presentations (3 presentations; each 15 min plus 5 min of discussion)
Session 3 – Fermentation and process technology of sourdough and bread productions
Chair: Dr. Markus BRANDT (Böcker, Minden, Germany)
12.30 - 14.00 – Lunch break
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14.00 – 16.30 – Plenary session
Session 4 – Functional aspects of sourdoughs
Chair: Prof. Christophe COURTIN (KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium)
14.00 - 14.40 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Luc DE VUYST
Flavour production during sourdough and sourdough bread production
14.40 – 15.20 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Kristin VERBEKE (KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium)
Human intervention and clinical trials with sourdough breads
15.20 – 15.50 – Coffee break and poster viewing
15.50 – 16.30 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Carlo RIZZELLO (Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy)
Mechanistic insights into the health-promoting activities of sourdough lactic acid bacteria
16.30 – 18.10 – Oral presentations (5 presentations; each 15 min plus 5 min of discussion)
Session 4 – Functional aspects of sourdoughs
Chair: Prof. Kati KATINA (University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland)
19.00 - Bus departure to Tervuren
20.00 - 24.00 - Conference dinner in the Afrikapaleis
Thursday, February 26, 2026
09.30 – 12.30 – Plenary session
Session 5 – Industrial practices, legislation, and other sourdough-based products
Chair: Dr. Fabienne VERTÉ (Puratos, Groot-Bijgaarden, Belgium)
09.30 – 10.10 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Kati KATINA (University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland)
Oat and rye based industrial sourdoughs – challenges and opportunities
10.10 – 10.50 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Elke ARENDT (University College Cork, Cork, Ireland)
Industrial gluten-free sourdough breads and cereal products
10.50 – 11.20 – Coffee break and poster viewing
11.20 – 12.00 – Keynote lecture
Prof. Ömer SIMSEK (Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey)
Other sourdough-based products
12.00 – 12.30 – Keynote lecture
Dr. Markus BRANDT (Böcker, Minden, Germany)
Sourdoughs and sourdough breads are diverse - but so is their regulation
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12.30 - 14.00 – Lunch break
14.00 – 15.30 – Poster session
14.00 – 14.30 – Flash presentations (6 presentations of 4 min)
Chair: Dr. Fernanda MOZZI (CERELA, San Miguél de Tucuman, Argentina)
14.30 – 15.30 – Poster viewing
15.30 - 17.15 h – Tasting session
Sourdough bread and beer pairing (organised by Puratos, Groot-Bijgaarden, Belgium)
Chair: Karl DE SMEDT (Puratos Group, Groot-Bijgaarden, Belgium)
Friday, February 27, 2026
09.00 – 10.30 h – Plenary session
Session 5 – Other sourdough-based products and technologies
Chair: Prof. Elke ARENDT (University College Cork, Cork, Ireland)
09.00 – 09.30
Speaker to be confirmed
09.30 - 10.00
Healthferm presentation
10.00 – 10.30 – Coffee break
10.30 – 11.30 h – Oral presentations (3 presentations; each 15 min plus 5 min of discussion)
Session 5 – Industrial practices, legislation, and other sourdough-based products
Chair: Prof. Elke ARENDT (University College Cork, Cork, Ireland)
11.30 – 12.00 – Closure of the symposium and announcement of the next edition
Prof. Luc DE VUYST (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium)