Chongqing - On Oct 23, the 11th China Chongqing International Hot Pot Industry Expo opened at the Chongqing International Expo Center. Running through this Sunday, the expo turns the birthplace of the fiery dish into a three-day showcase for one of China's most dynamic food sectors.
The expo drew a lot of locals and tourists to sit down together and enjoy hot pots (Photo: Event Organizer)
Positioning itself as the world's leading hot pot trade fair, this year's expo spans some 120,000 square meters and brings together more than 2,000 companies from across the global supply chain, displaying over 60,000 products alongside 30-plus professional events.
The opening ceremony doubled as a tribute to tradition: a hot pot heritage ritual was woven into the launch, with government officials and industry association representatives from major ingredient-producing regions across China sharing the stage — and the table — with global buyers and leading brand executives, setting a tone of full-chain collaboration for the days ahead.
A hotpot-making competition in the opening day (Photo: Feng Xiaolou)
Rather than simply going big, organizers have gone deep. Seven indoor halls cover everything from hot pot ingredients and regional specialty products to soup bases, seasonings, and food processing and packaging machinery. Specialized zones address increasingly specific industry needs: a food safety smart-inspection area responds to growing quality-control demands, while zones for mountain-fresh produce and halal ingredients connect farm origins with diverse consumer groups.
The expo's most eye-catching debut is an outdoor "panorama of new hot pot consumption," which shifts the logic from viewing products to stepping into scenarios. Around 100 brands — including hot pot chains, Chongqing Brewery, and even electric vehicle maker BYD — have embedded themselves through pop-up formats such as "hot pot plus banquet," "hot pot plus live show," and "hot pot plus intangible cultural heritage," allowing professional sourcing and consumer experience to unfold in the same space.
Day one rolled out content across five parallel tracks: an industry innovation conference themed "Reconstructing Boundaries" released a report on 2026 hot pot consumption trends; a procurement fair connected brands with hotels and other channels; while a culinary skills competition, the country's first hot pot-themed talk show, and influencer livestreams bridged the exhibition floor with online marketplaces.
One of the highlights that mark the industry trend is health-conscious innovation, emerging as a recurring theme in the expo. Xintian Group, a Chongqing-based seasonings producer leading the trend, is showcasing its upgraded Zhiyang flavored oil dip, which a company representative described as a response to shifting consumer priorities.
Xintian, while sustaining its edge in producing traditional sesame oil dipping sause, is also promoting its healthy innovations (Photo: Xintian Group)
"Consumers today no longer care only about flavor — their demand for balanced nutrition and healthier dining keeps growing," the Xintian representative said in the interview with iChongqing. The new dip comes in three variants built on olive oil, camellia oil, and flaxseed oil, with more than 51 percent premium plant oils blended with aromatic sesame oil. Its lightweight single-serving cans are designed for solo meals, small-group dining, and even camping trips, the representative added.
On Saturday and Sunday, the expo opens free of charge to the public, with visitors able to register in advance through the expo's WeChat mini program. A food supply chain conference, a Sichuan-Chongqing "jianghu cuisine" cook-off, and an AI robot chef show are among the weekend highlights — offering the densest snapshot yet of where China's hot pot industry is headed next.