Countdown to the Salon Gourmets 2025

Full house at 17

All of Spain’s seventeen Autonomous Communities will attend the 38th Salón Gourmets by Grupo Gourmets, Europe's most important professional gourmet food fair, with over 1,300 participating companies. Salón Gourmets is a must-visit for food journalists and professionals in the world of gastronomy and high-quality, sustainable food.

The countdown to the 38th edition of Salón Gourmets, Europe’s largest showcase of high-quality products, has begun. As the new year starts, anticipation builds for this premier event. Taking place from April 7 to 10, 2025, at Ifema Madrid, the 38th edition of Europe’s most exclusive professional Quality Food and Beverage Fair will bring together the world’s top agri-food products in the Spanish capital. For the first time, the fair will expand across six pavilions—3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8—covering nearly 90,000 m² filled with innovations, trends, and activities centered on one protagonist: quality products.

Six pavilions, over 2,000 exhibitors, 50,000 products, and 100,000 visitors, #SG25 will surpass its 2023 record, confirming Madrid as the European epicenter of quality products from April 7 to 10, 2025, at Ifema Madrid.

With over 2,000 exhibitors, Salón Gourmets (SG) will offer a journey through Spain and up to 30 countries via their delicatessen products, all without leaving Madrid. The event will feature at least ten stages—including exclusive ones for the Community of Madrid and Andalusia—spanning over 8,000 m², where exhibitors can demonstrate their products’ versatility through show cooking, tastings, championships, and conferences. New activities led by companies like Bergara Foundation, Xunta de Galicia, Turkish Airlines, Norway Day, and Navarra Day – Reyno Gourmet will also debut.

All 17 of Spain’s Autonomous Communities will attend, supporting over 1,300 companies and hundreds of small producers who use the fair to highlight the agricultural and wine production from every region. Traditional and innovative flavors alike will be on display, with Provincial Councils and Town Halls also participating to promote their local producers. The gourmet food fair will host over 100,000 professional visitors, including more than 15,000 international buyers from over 100 countries, based on last years attendance.

The quality of most products is internationally endorsed by EU-recognized seals: Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). PDOs are for products entirely made in a specific area, while PGIs require at least one production stage to occur there, both following strict standards. Exhibitors will showcase products bearing Spain’s 212 PDOs and 145 PGIs, from the oldest—Rioja (1925), later upgraded to Qualified PDO in 1991, shared only with Priorat—to the newest, like Chistorra de Navarra and Torrezno de Soria, recognized last year.

Activities take center stage at SG, with over 1,200 events filling the stands and stages across the pavilions. Iconic competitions include the 31st Ham Cutting Contest / Dehesa de Extremadura and the 15th GourmetQuesos, Spain’s Best Cheeses Championship, supported by ICEX. New contests include the Merluza do Pincho Challenge by Xunta de Galicia, the Atlantic Cuisine Contest by Xunta de Galicia, the Wild Game Flavors Championship by Bergara Foundation, and the Gazpachuelos Championship by Sabor a Málaga. Classics like the 30th Spanish Sommelier Championship Tierra de Sabor and the 17th Oyster Opening Championship / Sorlut / Grupo Gourmets return, alongside Estrella Galicia’s 16th Beer Pouring Championship and XChef Challenges by Cervezas 1906.

 Other notable contests include the 8th National “Best Cachopo with Asturian Beef IGP” Contest, the 5th National Carving Art Championship El Encinar de Humienta / Grupo Gourmets, the 5th Burger Combat Gourmet Burger Championship / Lantmännen, and the 4th Gourmet Pizza Championship. High-end miniature cuisine will shine in the 3rd Master Pinchos Gourmets #productoriojano and the 2nd Best Iberian Montado by Arturo Sánchez and Berkel. For the second year, “Enjoy It’s From Europe” / A Slice of Quality will bring premium Italian charcuterie to visitors.

The 3rd Master Pinchos Gourmets #productoriojano, organized with the Government of La Rioja, will celebrate tapas culture. Eight participants will create dishes using at least one ingredient from La Rioja’s PDOs or PGIs, such as PDO Pears of Rincón de Soto or PGI Riojan Chorizo, and certified products like La Rioja Vegetables. 

GourmetQuesos, the most prestigious cheese competition in Spain, returns to select the country’s best cheeses. Nearly 900 entries will compete across 20 categories, judged by 60 experts in two qualifying rounds, culminating in 60 finalists and one winner.

#SG25 also emphasizes internationalization through collaborations with ICEX and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food under the Spain Food Nation agreement. The Hosted Buyers Program, sponsored by ICEX and MAPA, will facilitate over 6,000 business meetings between exhibitors and 300 carefully selected international buyers at the Business Center. The Ministry’s #Alimentosdespaña space will feature quality seals, including the 29th Wine Tunnel and the 7th EVOO Tunnel, unique areas to explore Spain’s Denominations of Origin and its winemaking and olive oil diversity.

Versión en Español