Ready to put your innovation in the spotlight? Meet the FLIA 2026 Technology winner
One innovation. One global stage. One big win. In February 2026, ABZ Innovation took the L50 Drone to FRUIT LOGISTICA – and won the FRUIT LOGISTICA Innovation Award in the Technology category.
On 6 February 2026, the tension turned into celebration: the votes were counted, the winner was announced – and ABZ Innovation took home the FRUIT LOGISTICA Innovation Award in the Technology category with its L50 Drone.
Five innovations had made it onto the shortlist. For two days, FRUIT LOGISTICA trade visitors from around the world had the final say. Their choice: the LiDAR-based L50 agricultural spraying drone from Hungary.
A winning moment at FRUIT LOGISTICA 2026: ABZ Innovation receives the FRUIT LOGISTICA Innovation Award in the Technology category for its L50 Drone. From left to right: [Dávid Pálfalvi, Sales Executive]; [Gyula Török, CCO & Founder]; [Johanna Göbl, CMO], [Viktória Matuz, Head of PR & Communications] (Copyright: Messe Berlin)
Copyright: ABZ Innovation
Several months later, ABZ Innovation looks back at what the win meant, what the team learned from presenting its technology to an international trade audience – and what advice it has for the next generation of FLIA contenders.
What made the difference? What did the team take away from the experience? And what should ambitious innovators know before applying for the FLIA 2027?
We asked Gyula Török, CCO & Founder ABZ Innovation
The challenge: being ready when the field is not
What real-world challenge sparked the idea for the L50 Drone – and what does it do differently from conventional spraying solutions and earlier agricultural drones?
Gyula Török: The L50 was born out of a very practical challenge: large-scale growers need to treat their fields exactly when conditions are right, not when the ground allows it.
Conventional machinery is often unable to enter a field after rain when the soil is too soft – and that delay can cost farmers a significant share of their yield. Spraying drones solve this fundamentally because they operate above the crop rather than on it, eliminating trampling loss entirely.
With the L50, we pushed this further. It is Europe’s first 50-litre LiDAR-based agricultural spraying drone and was built for large-scale operations. It can cover up to 24 hectares per hour.
We also introduced cylindrical cell-based battery technology to this category. That allows the drone to stay airborne longer than other spraying drones of a similar or even larger size. The result: fewer battery swaps, more hectares covered and more flexibility in real farming conditions.
LiDAR turns autonomy into precision
What makes LiDAR such a game changer in practice?
Gyula Török: Most drones on the market still rely on radar or basic ultrasonic sensors to sense their surroundings. These can tell you that something is nearby. LiDAR goes much further.
It creates a detailed, real-time 3D map of the environment. That allows the drone to detect obstacles precisely and follow terrain contours accurately – even in orchards, vineyards or uneven fields.
For growers, this means safer, more autonomous operation and more consistent spray coverage. The drone adjusts its flight path and spraying height dynamically instead of simply following a rigid route.
FRUIT LOGISTICA put the technology in front of the world
You presented the L50 to a highly international audience at FRUIT LOGISTICA. What reaction stayed with you most?
Gyula Török: What stood out most was how consistently visitors from very different regions and farming backgrounds focused on the same two things: flight endurance and operating cost.
That confirmed something we had believed for a while: the market has moved beyond being impressed by drones simply flying and spraying. Professional users now evaluate them as serious agricultural equipment – based on efficiency, total cost of ownership and reliability in daily use.
We were also pleasantly surprised by the level of technical curiosity. Many visitors asked detailed questions about the LiDAR system and battery technology.
That told us they were not simply watching a demo. They were seriously assessing whether this technology could become part of their own operations.
Winning was a milestone – not the destination
What did winning the FLIA mean to you – and what came next?
Gyula Török: Winning the FLIA was meaningful recognition of the work behind the L50, but for us it was a checkpoint rather than a destination.
Our next major milestone was the opening of our new manufacturing facility in Szentendre this September, which is now allowing us to scale production to meet the demand we see across more than 40 markets. This expansion isn't just about volume – it´s about being able to back every drone we sell with the reliability, service network and hands-on training our customers expect from a European manufacturer, wherever in the world they operate.
Looking further ahead, we expect drones to become a standard part of everyday fruit and vegetable production rather than a specialised tool – from spot spraying to greenhouse applications, with the data they collect increasingly feeding directly into operational planning.
Growers are no longer asking whether the technology works. They are asking how to make it part of their daily routine.
Want to win people over? Make your innovation real
The FLIA 2027 application round is open. What would you tell an ambitious company thinking about entering?
Gyula Török: Don’t just tell people about your product. Let them see it and experience it.
At the FLIA, the visitors themselves are the jury. So the real opportunity is to convince the trade audience at your stand, not a panel behind closed doors.
If people can watch your product work, understand what it does and see the benefit for themselves, that is what earns their vote.
And don’t wait until your product feels completely finished. Some of our most valuable feedback has come from presenting to an international audience early and being open about where the technology is still heading.
A strong, honest story around a product that is still evolving can build more trust than a polished pitch around something nobody has seen work yet.
Your innovation could be next
The FRUIT LOGISTICA Innovation Award puts bold ideas in front of the global fruit and vegetable business – and lets the industry decide which innovations stand out.
In 2027, the FLIA will once again honour innovations in two categories:
Fresh Produce
Technology
Applications close on 31 October 2026.
If your innovation can move the industry forward, don’t keep it in the background.
Bring it to Berlin. Put it in front of the global trade audience. Let people experience what it can do.