The Saudifood Show: how a food exporter should prepare

When and where

The 2026 edition ran from 27 to 29 September 2026 at the Jeddah Superdome, alongside Saudifood Manufacturing. The dates for 2027 had not been announced when this page was written in October 2026. Watch thesaudifoodshow.com, the organiser’s site, for the next dates before you plan anything.

The organiser describes it as Saudi Arabia’s largest food and beverage sourcing event, connecting buyers, retailers and distributors with the country’s import, retail and hospitality networks. Its site lists more than 1,000 exhibitors from more than 95 countries, without saying which year, and reported on 1 October 2026 that more than 28,000 professionals attended the two shows in Jeddah.

Who you meet there

The organiser names importers, retailers, distributors and the hospitality trade (hotels, restaurants and catering) as the networks it connects. For an exporter, the importers and distributors are usually the first conversation, because they are the ones who bring a product into the country and onto a shelf. Among the exhibitors shown on its site are large Saudi and regional food companies, which tells you the local trade takes the show seriously.

Saudifood Show or Gulfood?

Gulfood in Dubai, in March, is far larger and draws buyers from across the region; our Gulfood 2027 guide covers it. The Saudifood Show is smaller and focused on one market. If Saudi Arabia is the country you want, it puts you in front of the people who buy for it, in their own country.

Six to eight weeks before

Pick twenty Saudi importers and distributors, by name. One line on why each one fits: what they carry, which retailers or hotels they supply, what they are missing.

Write to them before you fly, in English or Arabic, and ask for fifteen minutes at the show. The ones who answer are your best meetings.

Prepare what a Saudi buyer asks for. Spec sheets, certificates including halal where your product needs it, shelf life, Arabic labelling, minimum order and how you ship to Saudi ports. Have it ready to send the same week.

Check your email arrives. A note in a spam folder looks exactly like a note that was ignored. Our guide on why buyer emails go to spam covers the three records to check.

During and after

Write on the back of every card that evening: what they asked, what you promised, and one detail that will remind them who you are. Keep the price for a written follow-up. Then send what you promised in the first few days, and one or two more notes over the following weeks, each with something new to say. Our trade show follow-up guide has the plan and three short notes you can adapt.

The short version

The Saudifood Show is Saudi Arabia’s food sourcing show; the 2026 edition was in Jeddah in late September, and the 2027 dates were not yet announced in October 2026. Watch the organiser’s site, pick twenty Saudi importers and distributors, prepare halal and Arabic labelling answers, and follow up within the week.

Next: Gulfood 2027: how a food exporter should prepare