The recent EU Cross-Border Forum (EU CBEC) in Liège, attracted roughly 900 cargo professionals – a record-breaking number of participants. A key reason for this was that, since JUN26, the EU has been imposing a fee of EUR 3 per e-commerce shipment originating from outside the bloc. Consequently, this issue – which has led to a significant decline in the volume of goods imported by air freight – was at the center of the forum’s discussions. This was particularly evident during networking sessions, whereas most seats in the Van der Valk Hotel’s convention center remained empty despite many exciting topics. CargoForwarder Global asked some of the participants for their impressions of the trade show. Here are their comments:
Jason Breakwell, Wallenborn
The place is not very centralized and not easy to reach. However, the fact that the trade show attracted high caliber speakers and senior officials says a lot about the growing importance of Liège as a leading European cargo hub. In the past, Liège was associated with perishables. Global forwarders were missing but now they are here. The people responsible at the airport did a good job to attract them, which led to a remarkable growth in volumes mostly coming in from China, and a noticeable value increase.
Wallenborn runs a station at Liège Airport (LGG) since 2017. It was one of the best decisions ever we made. Currently, LGG accounts for 12% to 15% of our total air freight business, while 50% of Wallenborn’s entire business is air freight related.
Pascale de Mieter, Maastricht Airport
Connecting with the members of the air freight community always causes a positive mood because AI, Teams or Zoom cannot replace face-to-face conversations. I am also attending the Liège event because I am eager to hear the latest successes of the industry, and learn more about challenges and the solutions to master them. For me, attending the EU CBEC feels also like coming home since Liège is originally my homebase where I engaged in the air freight business for the last 23 years. So, it’s always good to liaise with my community once again.
Another reason is that Maastricht Airport can become a player by managing parts of the flows to or from LGG. Each airport has its strong points, and the Maastricht community is a one-of-a-kind community that finds solutions for air freight players, should hiccups occur. I think solving shortcomings through collaboration is our common interest because customer expectations and needs are standing on top of our airport’s agenda.
Markus Flacke, Lufthansa Industry Solutions
This is my second time at an EU CBEC in Liège. I believe this to be a good format for a conference by focusing on one specific theme in the air cargo supply chain. A real highlight are the insights on the drivers behind the e-commerce supply chain and how the business challenges the capabilities of ground handlers, airlines and airports alike.
What becomes very apparent though, is that this specific market segment requires an even stronger IT backbone and data insights than traditional air cargo. Nowadays, e-commerce operates in a highly regulated environment with tariffs and a multitude of customs regimes in place – here IT becomes a crucial part of a fast and efficient fulfilment process. As far as conferences are concerned, this is an event worth attending. However, one would like to see a more coordinated and harmonized conference schedule. September alone will have seen three conferences – beginning with Frankfurt’s Air Cargo Community Conference, followed by the EU CBEC in Liège, and the series then ending in Budapest, where IATA Cargo runs its “Cargo Experts” event from 23-24SEP26.
Asok Kumar, Morrisson Express
My main reasons for attending the EU CBEC event are networking and learning more about the latest developments and trends in the industry. That’s vital in my job. Hence, I attend two to three such events each year to sustain that goal. Of course, I need to prioritize since I cannot attend all trade shows offered by event organizers. Rounding off the three days of the EU EBEC, I’m glad to say that this trade show belongs to the ones I prioritized.
Arlette Kabore, Néré Cargo Consulting
Basically, I decided to attend the event because my job is about connecting European cargo players with their African peers, particularly with actors in Burkina Faso. In that country and in West Africa in general, there is a strong demand for pharma imports and e-commerce. On the export side, the region can offer the air transport of perishables into Europe.
My very first lesson in organizing and running trade shows, I learned in Riga, where I attended the Nordic Air Cargo Symposium 2026, last April. This said, I can say that there are severe differences between European and African market requirements in air freight. In Europe, regulations and bureaucratic rules are enormous, whereas in Africa, the business is run a bit more relaxed, to put it mildly. In addition, while in Europe, air and ocean freight, rail services and trucking play their respective parts to optimize supply chains, Burkina Faso for instance, is a landlocked country that relies heavily on air freight services. To foster this understanding, I try to bring players from both continents together. For this aim, the Liège event offers a suitable platform.
