Travel / news
Brussels Airport to overhaul entire F&B programme with landmark 2029 tender
Brussels Airport has announced a major food & beverage concession tender that will completely revamp its dining programme by 2029, focusing on data-driven passenger profiles and Gen Z expectations.
Speaking at the 2026 Airport Food & Beverage (FAB) + Hospitality Conference and Awards in Bengaluru, Brussels Airport Food & Beverage Manager Michiel Arnouts outlined plans for the tender, which will see all existing contracts expire in 2029. The airport aims to bring every F&B unit to market simultaneously, alongside new locations from future developments.
Brussels Airport currently serves 183 destinations through 70 airlines and welcomed 24.4 million passengers in 2025. Its single-terminal, two-pier complex houses 82 commercial outlets, including 47 retail stores and 35 food & beverage units.
Arnouts emphasised the airport's strong Belgian identity, noting that it sells 1.5 kilograms of Belgian chocolates every minute — a world record — and about 2,200 beers daily. The new tender seeks to build on this heritage while adapting to evolving traveller expectations.
“We want to make sure that we are ready for the future, looking at more data-driven passenger profiles, looking at Gen Z and the specific expectations travellers are going to have,” Arnouts said. The reimagined dining programme is described as a unique opportunity to completely reshape the airport’s F&B offer.