Busan food expo and chef challenge to open Oct. 9 at BEXCO
In short
Busan city said the 23rd Busan International Food Expo (BIFE 2026) and the 9th Busan Marina Chef Challenge (BMCC 2026) will run together from Oct. 9 to 11 at BEXCO in Haeundae. The expo, themed “a world tour of taste, burumatbul,” is laid out as a giant board game with 230 booths, while the WACS-approved chef challenge is set to draw about 600 competitors and 42 judges, 18 of them invited from abroad.
Read the full story 2 min read
Busan city said the 23rd Busan International Food Expo (BIFE 2026) and the 9th Busan Marina Chef Challenge (BMCC 2026) will be held together from Oct. 9 to 11 at BEXCO in Haeundae, according to the city's announcement on Oct. 7. A separate business outlet also reported that the food expo opens on the 9th. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The expo is themed “a world tour of taste, burumatbul,” and the venue is arranged so visitors move through it like players in a giant board game, looking for the tastes of Busan and of other countries. Its areas include a World Food Village, Sweet Land for Busan bakeries, a Seafood Port and an Experience School, while the tier-2 business outlet also lists Delicious Dining and a Delicious Busan Zone. A total of 230 booths take part, with Japan-, France-, Italy- and Vietnam-related organizations and companies presenting food and culture in the World Food Village. [ 2 , 3 ]
Cooking shows with well-known chefs and Korean master chefs run across the three days, the city said. The tier-2 outlet lists Park Hyo-nam, Park Ki-seop of Sogonggan, Kim Sang-jin of Outro Bar by Vito and Jung Jin-ho of Corduroy Pelaz on Oct. 9 using Busan ingredients; Sam Kim and Kwon Sung-jun of “Napoli Matfia,” along with Norwegian chef Kristine Ovrebo and Ahn Jong-sung, on Oct. 10; and Cho Seo-hyung and Kwak Dong-hoon on Oct. 11 for a Busan–Seoul street cooking show using Hanwoo beef, alongside a temple cuisine cooking show involving the Beomeosa Seon Culture Education Center. [ 2 , 3 ]
The Marina Chef Challenge is described as a World Chefs' Association (WACS)-approved international cooking competition. About 600 competitors, including working chefs and culinary students, are entered, with individual and team live contests, exhibition competitions and a K-FOOD festival, according to the tier-2 outlet, which adds that 50 teams and roughly 60 competitors come from Taiwan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Vietnam and Thailand. Judging involves 42 judges in total, including 18 invited from Switzerland, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Mongolia and Norway, the outlets reported. [ 2 , 3 ]
Cho Gyu-yul, director of the Busan city citizens' health bureau, said the expo was prepared so that visitors could enjoy Busan's tastes and food cultures from around the world in one place, and that the city hopes it becomes a venue where chefs, residents and tourists communicate and exchange through food. [ 3 ]
Why it matters
The two events put an international cooking competition and a city-run food fair in the same venue, which local outlets present as a chance for chefs, residents and tourists to meet around food. For readers outside Korea the direct impact is limited, but the lineup of invited foreign judges and teams shows how the city is using food events in its outreach.
Key facts
- BIFE 2026, the 23rd edition, and BMCC 2026, the 9th edition, will be held simultaneously from Oct. 9 to 11 at BEXCO in Haeundae, Busan. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The expo theme is “a world tour of taste, burumatbul,” with the venue arranged so visitors move through it like players in a giant board game. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The venue includes a World Food Village, Sweet Land for Busan bakeries, a Seafood Port and an Experience School, with 230 booths in total. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Japan-, France-, Italy- and Vietnam-related organizations and companies will run booths in the World Food Village. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The Marina Chef Challenge is a World Chefs' Association (WACS)-approved international cooking competition with about 600 competitors entered. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Judging involves 42 judges in total, including 18 invited from Switzerland, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Mongolia and Norway. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Cooking shows featuring well-known chefs and Korean master chefs will run throughout the event, according to Busan city. [ 2 , 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Busan city announced that BIFE 2026 and BMCC 2026 will be held together from Oct. 9 to 11 at BEXCO in Haeundae. [ 2 , 3 ]
- This year's expo is the 23rd edition and the chef challenge is the 9th. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The expo theme is “a world tour of taste, burumatbul.” [ 2 , 3 ]
- The event has 230 booths, including a World Food Village with Japan, France, Italy and Vietnam participants. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The chef challenge is WACS-approved and has about 600 competitors and 42 judges, 18 of them from abroad. [ 2 , 3 ]
- A cooking-show programme with invited chefs runs during the three days. [ 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- Whether any figures beyond booth, competitor and judge numbers were given, such as expected visitor attendance or ticket information. The documents do not mention attendance targets or tickets.
- The full list of countries represented at the World Food Village. The two outlets that describe the venue name only Japan, France, Italy and Vietnam.
- The details in one outlet's feed item about the expo. That outlet's article text covers an unrelated rocket launch, so only its headline about the expo opening on the 9th could be used.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- A business outlet reports that the Busan International Food Expo opens on the 9th. [ 1 ]
- The official-tier wire reports Busan city's announcement of BIFE 2026 and BMCC 2026, running Oct. 9–11 at BEXCO. [ 2 ]
- A tier-2 business outlet publishes further details, including the chef cooking-show schedule and the composition of the chef challenge. [ 3 ]