HCMC FOODEX 2025

HCMC FOODEX 2025, officially the 4th Ho Chi Minh City International Exhibition of Food & Beverages, took place from April 16 to 19, 2025, at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City. Hosted by the Investment and Trade Promotion Centre of Ho Chi Minh City (ITPC) and co-organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Food and Foodstuff Association, the exhibition adopted the theme “Natural – Green – Sustainable Products”, echoing the global shift toward clean-label, low-processed and environmentally friendly food suppliesHCMC FOODE. As a flagship B2B food event in southern Vietnam, it serves as a vital gateway linking local agricultural processors, domestic distributors and international food suppliers across the ASEAN region.

Covering an exhibition area of 8,800 square meters, the show accommodated 440 booths and gathered more than 350 exhibitors originating from over 20 economies, including Vietnam, China, South Korea, Japan and MalaysiaHCMC FOODE.... The display spectrum ran through the whole food value chain: fresh and dried agricultural commodities, roasted nut snacks such as sunflower seeds, spices and condiments, packaged confectionery, dairy products, functional beverages, frozen seafood, food additives, food processing machinery, intelligent roasting devices, eco-friendly packaging materials and rapid food safety testing instruments. Well-known local enterprises including Cholimex Food, Saigon Trading Group (SATRA) and Binh Tay Food occupied key booths to present signature Vietnamese seasonings and ready-to-eat food lines. Meanwhile, a large delegation of Chinese snack manufacturers participated, showcasing low-salt roasted seeds with controlled acrylamide levels, standardized sensory quality reports and complete food certification documents tailored for ASEAN import requirements. For these exporters, HCMC FOODEX offers a complementary market channel different from the Budapest China Brand Fair, targeting fast-growing Southeast Asian consumers with similar snack consumption habits and relatively flexible import procedures.

One of the most outstanding features of HCMC FOODEX 2025 was its emphasis on structured trade matchmaking. The organizer pre-arranged more than 1,000 one-on-one negotiation appointments between exhibitors and verified professional buyers from 15 countries, with prominent participation from the HoReCa sector, including hotel chains, restaurant groups and catering service operatorsHCMC FOODE. Unlike consumer-oriented food festivals, this expo prioritized bulk procurement, exclusive distribution agency, OEM co-production and long-term supply framework agreements. Many supermarket buyers from Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand conducted on-site sampling and flavor evaluation for imported nut products, focusing on saltiness, crispness, shelf stability and compliance with Vietnam’s food labelling rules. Parallel to booth displays, a series of industry seminars were held, covering hot topics such as ASEAN food import regulations, HACCP and ISO 22000 implementation, low-temperature green roasting technology, lipid oxidation control and sustainable packaging innovation. The “Master Chef of FOODEX” culinary competition was also staged, inviting chefs to demonstrate ingredient applications and provide direct sensory feedback to food developers.

Vietnam’s southern market delivers strong consumption momentum for packaged food. Local consumers increasingly favour nutritious snacks with less sodium, fewer artificial additives and traceable raw material sources, creating enormous market potential for roasted seeds, nuts and plant-based food. Nevertheless, overseas food enterprises still face practical market-entry hurdles. All pre-packaged imported food must finish ingredient declaration, label registration and official quarantine notification. Flavour localization is another critical challenge: Vietnamese buyers generally prefer mild salt taste and avoid heavy burnt bitterness for roasted sunflower seeds and similar kernel snacks. To lower the threshold for small and medium-sized manufacturers, the organizing committee set up dedicated consultation counters for regulatory compliance, certification application and product formula adjustment during the four-day exhibition.

Geographically, Ho Chi Minh City functions as the commercial hub of southern Vietnam and a logistics pivot of ASEAN. Goods cleared here can be efficiently distributed to Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia via mature road, port and cross-border warehousing networks. This location advantage makes HCMC FOODEX a preferred sourcing platform for regional importers, rather than merely a local Vietnamese showcase. It also helps Vietnamese agricultural brands, such as coconut products, tropical fruit preserves and fish sauces, find buyers in China and other Asia-Pacific markets, advancing two-way balanced food trade.

Despite its bright prospects, the expo and its participants still confront constraints. Many small exhibitors lack sufficient understanding of regional food standards, and cross-border payment, cold-chain logistics and post-import marketing remain pain points. Moreover, the competition among snack suppliers is intense, requiring brands to differentiate themselves by stable flavour, nutritional retention and credible safety records instead of simple price competition.