MEXICO CITY — Grupo Bimbo SAB de CV has launched the second edition of Bimbo Open Door, its open innovation platform for food companies. As part of the second edition of the program, Grupo Bimbo said it will focus on startups in the cookie and bar categories that have presented innovative projects in their respective sectors.

“With Bimbo Open Door, we strive to innovate and expand initiatives to continue to surprise our consumers with products that can satisfy current and new consumer habits,” said Raúl Obregón, Global Director of Information and Transformation at Grupo Bimbo. “We are excited to connect with innovative entrepreneurs who, like us, strive to feed a better world.”

Bimbo said he designed Bimbo Open Door to reach more than 20 countries in the Latin American region, including Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Argentina. The initiative operates through Bimbo Ventures, Grupo Bimbo’s business area dedicated to finding solutions through differentiated and unique products in global innovation ecosystems.

Participation in Bimbo Open Door will require companies to have a Bimbo-approved product with operations or expansion plans in the Americas, Canada to Argentina, and/or continental Europe. Companies must also have annual sales over $250,000 and availability to participate in the program in Mexico for 12 weeks.

In addition, Bimbo said candidates must be aligned with the company’s sustainability strategy. Nutritional diversity, simple and/or plant-based formulations and a nature-friendly business model will be the main areas Bimbo will consider as part of the selection process, the company said.

Bimbo said interested companies can apply in three areas:

1. Cookies and/or bars for children: “Products that offer nutritious and tasty options for the youngest at home using innovative ingredients and technologies.”
2. Innovative snacks: “Biscuits and/or bars with natural and unconventional ingredients, taking into account avant-garde processes that help preserve their taste.”
3. Craftsmanship and/or Traditional Recipes: “Cookies and/or bars with a unique twist that use new culinary techniques and creative presentations to keep the homemade essence and familiar flavor alive in every bite.”

Those companies selected by the company as finalists will receive mentoring from Bimbo executives and managers and the opportunity to learn about the company’s bakeries and innovation centers while working on their projects. In the last phase of the program, the finalists will present the results of their work to a forum of leading companies as part of “Demo Day”, Bimbo said. The finalists will move to the final phase of the program, called “Behind the Door”, in which Bimbo will follow each of their projects and identify the possibility of cooperation.

“Bimbo Open Door was born with the dream of transferring the experience and know-how created by Grupo Bimbo to companies with expansion potential through differentiated value propositions,” said Constantino Matouk, Global Director of Bimbo Ventures. “The first edition was a complete success. We received more than 250 applications from startups and scaleups from more than 20 countries, and we hope to connect with more entrepreneurs in this new cycle to create common knowledge and thus seek opportunities for future cooperation.”

The company has announced that it is accepting registrations through Bimbo Open Door until October 6. For this initiative, Bimbo partnered with Blue Box, the largest network of incubators, accelerators and corporate investment funds in Latin America. For more information and to apply for the project, companies can visit:https://www.bimbo-opendoor.com/