Gourmets opens its gastronomic ‘exclusivity’ fair

Hams, oils, cheeses, dairy products, beverages, sweets, preserves, jams and honey of exclusive quality are some of the 55,000 products that will be present this week at the 37th edition of the Salon Gourmets in Madrid.
The Food and Beverages Fair brings together some 2,000 exhibitors and expects around 100,000 visitors in halls 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8 of the Feria de Madrid. Wines account for 33% of exhibitors, followed by preserves, beverages, jams, oils and charcuterie in that order.
One of the strongest exhibitors is Extremadura, which will be offering products from 17 different PDOs/IPs. They are bringing fresh, organic Iberian meats to Madrid. Although, without a doubt, one of its star products is Extrem Puro Extremadura Iberian ham, reared in an environment surrounded by holm oaks and cork oaks.

Conservas Codesa, from Laredo, a third generation Cantabrian family business, brings its limited edition products of sea ham, anchovies, presented under the labels Reserva de Familia, Serie Limitada, Serie Rosa and its Premium Gildas, with a mild «spicy» touch, very balanced in textures and a final taste of Cantabrian anchovies.

Olive oils from Spain are part of the Spanish gastronomic identity and despite the historic increase in prices (180% since 2022) caused, among others, by the extreme drought of recent years, it has continued to be present on the tables, showing the loyalty of the consumer and will also be present in Hall 8 of the fair.

The traditional classics will continue to be present at this year’s fair, such as Mazapanes Barroso, which is bringing craftsmanship from Toledo to Madrid. Not only traditional sweets, but also novelties such as almond sponge cakes, marron glacé yolks, oil scones or Lotus truffles. All a temptation!

Representatives from 85 countries are taking part in the 37th Salón Gourmets. Morocco is the country of honour, while Andalusia will be the guest province. For those who cannot attend in person, they will have the chance to follow everything that is «cooking» on the streaming channel of the Gourmets TV website, which will broadcast the activities that will take place in the auditorium, the classroom, the stage, the Gourmets stage or the MAPA Stage. In addition to these, there will be the Pizza Stage and the Community of Madrid Stage.

There will also be showcooking, such as that offered by the Asturian meat company Trasacar, with more than three decades of experience, and grill master Mariano García Poyuelo, who together with meat expert Javier Trabadelo won the title of «Best Meat in Spain» in the National Grill 2023 competition.

In Madrid, they will explain the steps to make a perfect cutlet, what is the best salt for grilling and when to apply it, and what maturation should be given to the meat. In addition, they promise to reveal the best-kept secret of a professional griller: the perfect point of the meat.

There will also be showcooking of Italian products with the mastery of chef Rubén Fenollar, who will explain the potential of Italian charcuterie for 21st century gastronomy. He will show his expertise with Mortadella Bologna IGP, Salamini Italiani alla Cacciatora DOP, Zampone Modena IGP or Cotechino Modena IGP. Products present at the stand of A slice of quality for the origin of Europe, A slice of quality.

More than a thousand activities in the five pavilions dedicated to products such as wine, olive oils, preserves, meat, charcuterie, condiments, sauces, ready meals, smoked foods, cheeses, cured meats, pickles, nuts, coffee and sweets are just some of the sectors that will attract the attention of trade visitors.

Coinciding with Sant Jordi, the show will open the Librería Gastronómica Gourmetour+ (Gourmetour+ Gastronomic Bookshop) located in Hall 8 to discover numerous works by gastronomic publishers, who have invited some of their writers to sign their books.

On the same day, Granada celebrates its day with an intense programme of activities as a gastronomic province and pantry of excellence in Andalusia. They will prepare a super nutritious breakfast based on fruit from the Costa Tropical, non-alcoholic cocktails, vermouth of all flavours and styles, sweets such as piononos from Santa Fe and elaborations with honey from La Alpujarra, almonds from the Altiplano and fresh fruit from La Vega.

Cordoba will present its gastronomic heritage with such well-known products as gazpacho, salmorejo, flamenquín, oxtail, alfajores and pestiños.

Different chefs and experts from the Canary Islands will be holding showcookings with their native varieties such as gofio, volcanic wines, tuna and sea bass.

The other Spanish archipelago, the Balearic Islands, will develop its «four islands to savour» programme with items such as dairy products from the Menorcan Vermella cow, Mahón cheese, Binissalem varietal wines, Ramellet tomato, sobrassada, Mallorcan pork, the flor de sal des Trenc and products made from carob.

In order to be able to personally organise each visit, information about the show will be updated through the Salon Gourmets App on Google Play and App Store, and impressions can be commented on the different social networks. Instagram, Facebook, X, Linkedin, Youtube and TikTok.

As is the case with major gastronomic fairs, other activities will be organised in parallel to the show, and outside the IFEMA facilities. Coinciding with Earth Week, the MadBlue forum (foro MadBlue) is held, which is committed to sustainable food and gastronomy. This year the focus is on superfoods of marine origin.

During the event, projects such as Mediterraen Algae, led by a young woman from Alicante who cultivates native algae on land to obtain biomass, or the proposals of Bluana, which makes vegan ‘salmon’ with marine products and prepares vegan sashimi, will be explained.

Another project related to food security is the one presented by Aloalto. It produces vegetables using an advanced vertical farming system that aims to be powered exclusively by electricity from renewable sources within a radius of between 15 and 10 kilometres from city centres. At the moment they are focusing on growing gourmet strawberries.

The COAM (Official College of Architects of Madrid) will be attended by researchers such as the Swede Yngvar Olsen, a specialist in the nutrition of plankton organisms, who will talk about these superfoods, and Joaquín Garrido, secretary general of the Regulatory Council of the PDO Mexillón de Galicia, and 70 start-ups from the sector have been invited to take part.

Gourmet Solidarity

Salón Gourmets and solidarity from the NGO Gastronomía Solidaria, which organised a competition on 24 April at the Cuatro Vientos viewpoint, with the participation of more than 50 chefs and confectioners from Madrid.

This organisation, led by chef Chema de Isidro, helps to incorporate young people at risk of exclusion into the hotel and catering labour market. Within IFEMA, showcookings with distilled food workshops and wine tastings with Custodio Zamarra and Javier Gila and a pincho tasting area in favour of the Asociación de Enfermedades Raras (Rare Diseases Association) are planned.

There will also be a space for Aldeas Infantiles SOS and Banco de Alimentos de Madrid, which on the last day of the show will collect products donated by exhibitors. Last year they collected 6,750 kilos of food.

Solidarity will also be shown with Ukraine, which will participate with a stand provided by MARVA, allowing it to showcase the richness and variety of its products and hopes that this will be an opportunity to position itself in new markets.

The Salón Gourmets has a space dedicated to children and future consumers. Some 1,000 pupils aged 8 to 12 will enjoy some of the 4 workshops open to them, such as the Castilla León «Tierra de Sabor» workshop, where they will have a breakfast of Iberian ham toast with AOVE, strawberries and whole milk, the Galicia stand will take them to the world of honey, to discover the hidden treasures of the so-called Sweet Gold, and they will get their hands in the dough to learn how to make bread with Horneo Fresh.

Everything imaginable from gastronomy, restaurants, distribution, catering and bars has its place at the Salón Gourmets.

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