Brandenburg connects, Berlin stages

Anyone walking through the Brandenburg Hall at the Berlin Exhibition Grounds on Thursday could have been forgiven for thinking that the Grüne Woche had already begun. In front of almost every stand in Hall 21a, people were chatting in small groups, laughing, or drinking coffee. “That's what makes us special here in Brandenburg. We've all known each other for decades and help each other out,” says Marcus Baum from Dreistern-Konserven. At his booth, he promotes the Plentz bakery, which in return provides him with bread for his spreads.

Close networking in Brandenburg

“Networks are being created here in Brandenburg,” says Karl-Dietmar Plentz. “Two years ago, we met farmers here who grow chickpeas in Brandenburg,” he explains. Karl-Dietmar Plentz now sells the chickpeas from the Trebbin agricultural cooperative at his stand. This also gave him the idea of offering bread made from chickpea flour in addition to rye bread made from natural sourdough based on his great-grandfather's recipe. The master baker has been exhibiting in the Brandenburg Hall for 25 years. For the 100th anniversary, he baked a Grüne Woche loaf of bread measuring around 1.20 meters in length. At 148 years old, his company is even older than the trade fair itself. Everyone in Brandenburg is closely connected – including Agriculture Minister Hanka Fröhlich. “She was an exhibitor in the Brandenburg Hall for a long time. We see her as one of us,” says Karl-Dietmar Plentz. “It's like a family reunion here.”

Break off pieces of original Berlin Wall stones yourself

Berlin is also sending a message of connection, heritage, and living tradition: the area has been expanded from 500 to 1,200 square meters and is located in Hall 21b this year. The area is hard to miss: the GDR Museum is presenting 3.60-meter-high original stones from the Berlin Wall, from which visitors can break off pieces themselves, weigh them on an old GDR scale, and purchase them. Until January 20, BRYX Toys is building a 1:54 scale replica of the Berlin TV Tower from 50,000 interlocking bricks at a height of 6.80 meters, while the Berlin Radio Tower is available for purchase at a height of 25 centimeters. Berlin also has a colorful wall as a photo spot and its own stage, which will be used by rbb 88.8.

Berlin allotment gardeners revive Grüne Woche after the end of the war

The Berlin Regional Association of Gardeners (Hall 21b/223) also has a stand showcasing a piece of Berlin. Here, visitors can learn about the influence that allotment gardeners have had and continue to have on Grüne Woche. “Thanks to the allotment gardeners who brought their fruit and vegetables to the exhibition grounds, agricultural products could be displayed again for the first time after the Second World War in 1948,” says Lars Jaeger, director of the Grüne Woche.

The start-up area, where 17 different companies will be presenting themselves over the course of the fair, the “Crafted in Berlin” joint stand with selected regional manufacturers, and the “Initiative gegen Beliebigkeit” (Initiative against Arbitrariness), an association of various traditional businesses, will provide the current Berlin flair. Star chef Tim Raue will present the new currywurst creations for the TV Tower restaurant (21b/221) on Wednesday, January 21, at 11:00 a.m.