Culinary Art Food Expo 2026 Set to Showcase Sri Lanka’s Culinary Talent and Food Industry Potential

Sri Lanka’s food and hospitality industries will take centre stage at the 23rd edition of the Culinary Art Food Expo (CAFE 2026), bringing together industry professionals, businesses and emerging culinary talent for one of the country’s major events dedicated to the sector.

Scheduled from 27 to 29 November at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH), Colombo, the exhibition is expected to attract more than 15,000 visitors, with over 200 exhibition stalls showcasing products, services and technologies across the food and hospitality value chain. The awards ceremony will take place on 30 November.

Organised by the Chefs’ Guild of Lanka (CGL), a member of the World Association of Chefs’ Societies (Worldchefs), in collaboration with CDC Events & Travels (Pvt) Ltd, CAFE 2026 will bring together chefs, hoteliers, food manufacturers, distributors, hospitality professionals and industry leaders.

A major feature of this year’s event will be its international culinary competition, with more than 3,000 participants, nearly 4,000 food entries and over 40 local and international judges expected. Competitions will cover live cooking, pastry and bakery, chocolate showpieces, cake decorating, fruit and vegetable carving, and mixology, providing a platform for culinary professionals and hospitality students to demonstrate their skills.

The programme will also introduce two concurrent events: the World Young Chefs Club Sri Lanka Junior Chefs Culinary Championship 2026 and the World Chefs Global Butchery Competition 2026 – Sri Lanka. These initiatives are expected to add further opportunities for young and emerging culinary professionals to develop their capabilities and gain exposure.

The event comes at an important time for Sri Lanka’s international culinary engagement. The country is participating in the Culinary World Cup 2026 in Luxembourg from 21 to 25 November, while the Chefs’ Guild of Lanka is also pursuing a bid to host the Worldchefs Congress in 2030. Sri Lankan culinary teams have previously represented the country at the Culinary World Cup and World Culinary Olympics, winning multiple gold medals, according to the organisers.

Beyond competition, Culinary Art Food Expo (CAFE 2026) will provide a platform for business engagement across the sector. Exhibits will include food and beverages, processed foods, spices, bakery products, tea and coffee, kitchen and catering equipment, food-processing technology, packaging and hospitality solutions. Product launches, demonstrations and business-to-business networking are among the opportunities planned for participating businesses.

Nestlé Lanka Limited is the Diamond Sponsor of Culinary Art Food Expo 2026, while Asriel Marketing (Pvt) Ltd is the Platinum Sponsor. The event is further supported by leading food and beverage companies as Gold Sponsors, including Cargills Ceylon PLC, Maliban Biscuits Manufactories (Pvt) Ltd, C.W. Mackie PLC / Sunquick, Tastyy (Pvt) Ltd, CBL Food Solutions, International Distillers Limited, Pelwatte Dairy Industries Ltd, Pyramid Wilmar (Pvt) Ltd, Prima Ceylon PLC, Silvermill Naturals (Pvt) Ltd, and Dilmah Ceylon PLC.

The Co-Sponsors are CIC Agri Produce Export (Private) Limited, Litro Gas Lanka, and Fonterra Brands Lanka (Pvt) Ltd.

By combining industry exhibition, professional competition and business networking, Culinary Art Food Expo 2026 aims to strengthen connections across Sri Lanka’s food and hospitality value chain while showcasing the capabilities of its culinary professionals.

The exhibition will be held at BMICH from 27 to 29 November 2026. Further information is available at www.culinaryart.lk.