Ho Chi Minh City's largest vegetarian food fest takes place with focus on green cuisine

The event is intended to go beyond simply showcasing vegetarian dishes and gradually develop into a green food ecosystem connecting ingredients, producers, chefs, businesses, consumers, tourism operators, and the community.

Through a series of activities, the Green Food Festival 2026 promotes the message 'Choose Green Food - For a Green Future,' bringing stories about environmental protection, healthy living, food culture, and green tourism closer to the community, particularly younger generations.

It brings together hundreds of booths featuring vegetarian dishes ranging from traditional Vietnamese favorites to modern plant-based creations, alongside products from green food companies, clean agriculture producers, and eco-friendly consumer brands.

The festival features cooking demonstrations of vegetarian versions of popular Vietnamese dishes, including pho, banh mi, and banh xeo, with experts sharing recipes, preparation techniques, and business experience in vegetarian cuisine.

It also includes the 'Connecting Love - Sowing Seeds of Happiness' program, which will provide 200 essential-goods packages to people in need.

A free vegetarian feast serving 500 meals will also be held as part of the festival.

In addition, 30 full 'Green Chef Scholarships' will be awarded to disadvantaged young people, giving them an opportunity to receive professional culinary training, improve their employment prospects, and work toward sustainable livelihoods.

On August 30, Green Environment Day will wrap up the festival with a waste recycling event and a 'Pot-Free Gardening with Coconut Fiber' activity, offering parents and children hands-on experiences in waste sorting and recycling, growing clean vegetables at home and developing green habits through small everyday actions.

Throughout the festival, the main stage will host cultural and artistic performances from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm each evening.

'Green chefs' for greener environment 

A highlight on the opening day, August 24, was the Green MasterChef Vietnam 2026 professional chef competition.

Chefs competed in vegetarian pho in the morning and vegetarian bun (rice vermicelli) in the afternoon, vying for the titles of 'Vegetarian Pho Ambassador 2026' and 'Vegetarian Bun Ambassador 2026.'

Under the rules of the competition, all dishes had to be made entirely from plant-based ingredients, with priority given to local ingredients and natural seasonings of Vietnamese origin.

Contestants were encouraged to be creative while preserving the spirit and cultural identity of Vietnamese noodle dishes of pho and bun.

Judges assessed the origin and use of ingredients, cooking techniques, Vietnamese culinary identity, food safety, and healthfulness, the potential for incorporating dishes into commercial menus, as well as efforts to reduce waste and demonstrate environmental responsibility.

Chef Alain Nguyen, head of the judging panel, said the competition was not only looking for chefs who could create delicious vegetarian dishes, but also for those who understood ingredients, had strong technical skills, respected Vietnamese culinary identity and took responsibility for health, the environment, and the community.

The 'ambassador' title was not simply about creating a delicious dish but it also reflected expectations for a 'green chef' who could use their profession and cuisine to inspire others and encourage greener choices within the community.