Seoul Food 2026 opens with focus on exports, global partnerships

Seoul Food 2026 kicked off at the Kintex exhibition center in Goyang, Gyeonggi, on Tuesday.

This year, the four-day food exhibition — hosted by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (Kotra) — brings together 1,800 companies from 49 countries to showcase the latest industry trends and establish new business partnerships.

The United States is this year's country of honor, with over 40 U.S. companies operating individual booths at the exhibition center to promote their products, ranging from meat to innovative snacks, nuts and sustainable ingredients.

Seoul Food 2026 also offers export consultation sessions and networking opportunities. This move builds on last year's success, when a total of 3,878 export consultations took place, resulting in export deals cumulatively worth $536 million.

Kotra will organize export consultation sessions for overseas buyers on Tuesday and Wednesday, with 288 buyers from 46 countries scheduled to participate. The agency aims to facilitate around 5,000 consultations that lead to export deals worth approximately $650 million.

On Tuesday, marketing events will take place throughout Kintex. As part of Global Commerce Day, for example, influencers from Asian countries, including China and Vietnam, will sell products at the expo via livestreams. E-commerce companies Coupang and Grip will do the same on Wednesday, and Naver Shopping on Thursday and Friday.

"Korean food has grown beyond a simple export category and is considered a strategic industry that promotes the competitiveness of [the country]'s industries and cultural value on a global stage," said Kotra President Kang Kyung-sung. "We hope that Seoul Food 2026 will become a key platform that helps Korean food companies expand into overseas markets and grow sustainably while creating a virtuous cycle that drives Korean food exports and develops the industry."

BY LEE TAE-HEE [[email protected]]