(March 17, 2026)
On March 7 and 8, the Wish for a Baby fair was held in Berlin showcasing the commercial fertility industry. The following press release was from a women’s rights group that protested the event given that surrogacy is prohibited in Germany. In particular they pointed out how international agencies were involved, including at the top of their list, Circle Surrogacy, which is headquartered in Boston, The text below is from a Google Chrome translation of their press release. Here’s a link to the original German post:
https://www.netzwerkfrauenrechte.de/2026/03/03/pressemitteilung-wish-for-a-baby-messe
Network for Women’s Rights protests against the “Wish for a Baby” fair – No to the commercialization of women’s bodies and children (Press release)
Berlin, March 2, 2026 – The Women’s Rights Network (Netzwerk Frauenrechte e. V.) is calling for protests against the “Wish for a Baby” fair , which will take place on March 7 and 8, 2026, at the Estrel Hotel in Berlin . This fertility fair brings together international fertility clinics, sperm and egg banks, counseling centers, and agencies for adoption and surrogacy – all under one roof. The program includes seminars on surrogacy abroad, egg donation, single motherhood, fertility treatments in various countries, and other “alternative paths” to starting a family.
From Lotti / March 3, 2026
In addition to clinics and counseling services, several international agencies are represented that arrange commercial surrogacy and promote corresponding programs in various countries. These include, among others:
- Circle Surrogacy (USA), booth 70
- Nordic Surrogacy (Sweden / International), consulting on programs in various countries
- Creating Your Dreams Surrogacy (USA), booth 180
- Extraordinary Conceptions (USA), booth 280
- Same Love Surrogacy (USA), booth 380
- Afrigha Surrogacy (Ghana), Stand 370
The fair thus clearly serves not only to provide information on the desire to have children, but also to advertise and initiate surrogacy and egg donation programs abroad – practices that are prohibited in Germany.
Exploitation instead of self-determination:
The Women’s Rights Network criticizes this normalization of commercial surrogacy as an attack on the dignity and bodily integrity of women. Often, the women carrying the children come from poorer countries or from socially precarious circumstances, while the commissioning parties are wealthy and come from affluent nations. Surrogacy is therefore not an act of solidarity, but rather part of a global market that profits from the economic hardship of many women.
Women bear the health and psychological risks of hormone treatments, pregnancy and childbirth, while agencies and clients profit from a system that turns female reproductive capacity into a service.
Women’s bodies are not commodities – children are not products.
Surrogacy and egg donation reduce women to a means to an end: parenthood for sale. The child is separated from its birth mother and presented as an orderable and affordable “result” of a contract. Unlike adoptions, there is no systematic review of the suitability, motivation, and circumstances of the buyers. This creates a dangerous proximity to child trafficking.
Legal situation ignored – prohibitions circumvented.
While the trade fair takes place in Germany, models and programs are actively promoted there that circumvent German prohibitions and resort to foreign legal systems. This undermines the protective purpose of German law, which is specifically designed to protect women and children from this kind of commercialization.
Our demands:
- Consistent enforcement of the German ban on surrogacy and egg donation in accordance with the Embryo Protection Act (ESchG) and the Adoption Placement Act (AdVermiG).
- Effective sanctions against advertising, brokering and events that promote these practices or advertise them as a “service” – even if the activities take place abroad.
- A clear political stance against the global exploitation of female reproductive power and against the commercialization of pregnancy and childbirth.
- Protection and support programs for women who are economically, physically, or psychologically exploited through such practices.
