Christmas preparations for Sigep World remain in full-flow
Key progress has been made in organising the latest edition of Sigep World, featuring an expanded range of exhibitors from around the world, writes Neill Barston.
The event, which covers the global chocolate, gelato, pastry, bakery and pizza market is organised by Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), is set for the Rimini Expo Centre between 16- 20 January, 2026.
As its organising team noted, the showcase will highlight both new products and technologies, as well as celebrating manufacturing excellence across these combined sectors within the foodservice market.
For its latest iteration, there will be a total of 1,300 exhibiting brands bringing the best of Made in Italy to Rimini, from traditional supply chains to the most advanced technologies.
Alongside a solid and outstanding Italian attendance, represented by leading companies in the foodservice supply chain, the foreign component will also be significantly bigger, up 28% with 45 countries ready to tap into the global dolce foodservice and out-of-home market.
As the organising team noted, there has been significant growth and development across these sectors in recent years that has in turn been reflected in the growth of the event.
There have been notable innovations emerging in a host of countries including Germany, Spain, France, China, Turkey, Belgium, Poland, the United States, Greece and Denmark, which will be attending the show with technologies, ingredients, products and know-how able to influence trends and strategies in the global market.
New entries for the 2026 edition will be joining this scenario: Canada, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Ecuador, Estonia, Serbia, Singapore, Nepal and the Czech Republic. The show will also feature the National Hall, the official collectives of countries that choose SIGEP World as a strategic showcase for their top products: Saudi Arabia, China, Ukraine and Brazil will be attending this year.
The international picture will be completed by India, Guest Country 2026, which is expected to send a delegation of 50 top buyers and institutional representatives, as well as exhibitors specialising in gelato technologies.
Buyer programme
One of its key features will be a buyer programme, bringing together 500 buyers from 75 countries to Rimini with the United States, India, Canada and Brazil leading the way in terms of representation. The profiles involved will include major foodservice chains, large importers and distributors committed to selecting technologies, products and solutions to anticipate the needs of global markets.
Gelato will remain among core focuses of the show, with special focuses on its manufacturing, as well as a supply chain initiative designed to show customers including hotels and international operators how, and with what business model, Italian gelato is now a global business lever.
Furthermore, the event’s pastry sector will be bigger, driven by frozen products and technologies that give patisseries many more possibilities; chocolate will bring the big players into the field with increasingly sustainable processes; the bakery sector will express a new industrial maturity, while pizza will be stepping on the accelerator with Pizza revolution and advanced doughs and formats that are conquering the international market.
Everything that connects and enhances traditional supply chains will also be on show: foodservice technologies will feature in the Kitchen Equipment Hub, a showcase for solutions that will change the way food is produced, served and managed; the Frozen Product Hub will snapshot the growth of quality frozen foods, becoming a strategic ally for formats and chains, while digital services will find a home in the new Digital District, where software, smart payments and robotics will redesign work in both the dining room and the kitchen.
