Gourmet events in France are no longer limited to a schedule of tastings and culinary demonstrations. The regulatory framework has caught up with the sector, and organizers who ignore the new environmental obligations face real legal risks. We take stock of the major gastronomic events of the season and what is changing for professionals.
Anti-waste clauses in public catering contracts
Since August 21, 2026, every public contract must include at least one award criterion and an environmental execution clause. Event catering services (caterers, festivals, trade shows) are directly affected.
For local authorities organizing local festivals or gourmet events, this requires the inclusion of structured anti-waste clauses in the specifications: diagnosis of food waste, quantified action plan, reporting at the end of the service. A contract lacking these elements is now non-compliant.
This constraint changes the profile of selected providers. Caterers who can document their waste rate, propose a redistribution circuit for unsold items, or justify sourcing from short supply chains gain a measurable competitive advantage during tenders. We observe that several regional festivals have already revised their catering lots to integrate these requirements as early as the current season.
On the sector monitoring side, L’Entracte Gourmand news allows you to follow trends and events that incorporate these new responsible practices.
Sorting of bio-waste: what applies to festivals and gourmet markets
Since January 1, 2024, all professionals producing bio-waste must sort it at the source, with no minimum volume threshold. For a street food festival or a producers’ market, the obligation is the same as for a permanent restaurant.
In practice, this means that each stand must have a separate collection system or a nearby composting solution. Organizers bear direct responsibility: they must provide sorting infrastructure and ensure that exhibitors use it.
Concrete points of vigilance for a gourmet event:
- Provide identified collection bins (bio-waste, packaging, residual waste) at each catering island, not just at the site exits
- Contract with an approved collection service provider or a local composting site before the event, as treatment capacities are often saturated during peak season
- Train volunteers and floor teams on sorting; otherwise, bins become contaminated and collection loses its usefulness
Failure to comply with this obligation exposes one to administrative penalties. Several food fairs in the region received warnings during inspections in 2024 and 2025.
Gastronomic events of the season in France: selection by format
Rather than an exhaustive calendar, we highlight formats that stand out due to their positioning or programming.
Urban festivals with a gastronomic focus
The Lyon Street Food Festival remains a reference for the street food segment with a live cooking dimension that attracts both professionals and the general public. In Paris, the Village International de la Gastronomie, located at Place de la Concorde, offers a different format: pavilions by country, focused on discovering foreign terroirs.
BigFest 2026, positioned under the “Food & Teuf” label at La Felicità, combines musical programming with ephemeral culinary offerings. This type of hybridization attracts a younger audience, often absent from traditional fairs.
Regional and terroir events
The Relais du Goût in Reims is in its third edition, with a strong Champagne anchoring. In Vaucluse, Bien Bon 2026 du Grand Avignon is in its fourth edition and focuses on highlighting local producers in an accessible format.
The Miro Festival in Ostwald, led by chef Robin Dorgler, combines gastronomy, music, and craftsmanship. This triple positioning attracts a diverse audience and illustrates the trend of gourmet events moving beyond the strict culinary perimeter.
Professional trade shows with a public dimension
Taste of Paris and the Salon du Chocolat maintain their status as essential Parisian events. The Sirha Bake & Snack, more specialized, targets professionals in bakery-pastry and snacking with advanced technical demonstrations.
Environmental claims on gourmet events: the European directive of September 2026
One point that most culinary agendas do not address: the European directive 2024/825 on environmental claims, applicable from September 27, 2026. It regulates mentions such as “eco-responsible,” “zero waste,” and “sustainable” used by event organizers for their communication.
Festivals that promote a green approach without being able to document it expose themselves to lawsuits for misleading business practices. Vague terms (“commitment to the planet,” “responsible festival”) without verifiable evidence become legally risky.
For professionals in event catering, this requires:
- Documenting each claim with measurable data (volume of bio-waste diverted from landfill, percentage of local sourcing, carbon footprint of transport)
- Removing generic formulations from communication materials (posters, websites, social media)
- Anticipating a check by the DGCCRF, which now has a strengthened legal framework to sanction event greenwashing
This directive changes the game for gourmet events that have built their attractiveness on a responsible image. Only organizers who can prove their commitments will be able to continue to claim them.
The 2026-2027 gastronomic season thus plays out on two fronts: the quality of culinary programming and regulatory compliance. Festivals that anticipate these constraints transform an obligation into a differentiation argument with local authorities, sponsors, and an increasingly attentive audience to the coherence of stated commitments.
