Within the framework of our ECCO membership, Joanna Bucka-Kolendo, Ph.D. and Justyna Nasiłowska, M.Sc. from the Collection of Industrial Microorganisms of Instytut Biotechnologii Przemysłu Rolno-Spożywczego – PIB attended a wonderful conference – ECCO XLI ‘The impact of microbial resources in healthcare, agriculture and ecology’, organised by the BCCM – Belgian Coordinated Collection of Microorganisms. They were welcomed into the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels, where they could enjoy an outstanding scientific program and social program relating to the celebration of the 40th anniversary of BCCM with an interesting exposition on microorganisms. During the meetings, the topics related to the broad use of microorganisms in food, health and agriculture were discussed, and the latest trends in research methods, data management and quality policy aspects were presented. Conference participants also took part in a workshop on the use of MALDI-TOF MS (Bruker) methods in research on microorganisms.