Brazil’s 2026 Coffee-Festival Calendar: Dates, Cities, Context
For anyone planning around a Brazil coffee festival this year, the calendar has two clear anchors: a consumer-facing show in Sao Paulo that has just closed, and a large industry fair in Belo Horizonte still to come. Knowing which is which, and what each is for, makes the difference between a fun weekend and a working trip.
What the Sao Paulo Coffee Festival was
The Sao Paulo Coffee Festival ran from 26 to 28 June 2026 at the Pavilhao da Bienal, the exhibition hall inside Ibirapuera Park. The 2026 edition set a record for the event, drawing about 17,500 visitors across the three days.
More than 150 brands took part, from roasters and equipment makers to cafes and specialty producers. The format is built for the public as much as the trade: tastings, brewing demonstrations, talks and stalls, rather than a closed-door negotiating floor.
If you missed it, the practical point is simple. This edition is over, and the next comparable moment on the national calendar sits in November, several hundred kilometres away.
The Pavilhao da Bienal is a fitting home for the event. Set within Ibirapuera, the city’s best-known park, it gives the festival room for hundreds of stands while keeping it central and easy to reach by public transport.
The next date: Semana Internacional do Cafe
The Semana Internacional do Cafe, usually shortened to SIC, runs from 11 to 13 November 2026. It takes place at Expominas, the large convention centre in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais and the heart of Brazilian coffee country.
SIC is a trade fair first. It bills itself as Brazil’s largest coffee event, and it gathers producers, cooperatives, exporters, roasters and equipment suppliers under one roof for three days of business, competitions and seminars.
For the industry, this is the date that matters in the second half of the year. For a visitor, it is a chance to see the supply chain up close, from green beans to finished cup.
Belo Horizonte is no accident as the host city. Minas Gerais is Brazil’s dominant coffee state, so holding the country’s biggest fair there puts buyers within reach of the farms and cooperatives that supply much of the national crop.
Consumer show versus trade fair
The two events are not interchangeable, and it helps to be clear about the difference. The Sao Paulo festival is a consumer show: designed for enthusiasts, families and curious drinkers who want to taste widely and learn.
SIC in Belo Horizonte leans the other way. Its centre of gravity is business, from sourcing and deals to cupping competitions and technical sessions, even if members of the public can attend parts of it.
A useful test: if you want to drink great coffee and enjoy a weekend, the Sao Paulo format fits. If you want to meet producers and understand the trade, Belo Horizonte in November is the stronger choice.
In practice, many serious coffee people attend both. The Sao Paulo show is where trends reach the public, while SIC is where the deals and the technical conversations happen, and the two together map the year for the sector.
Cost is another difference worth noting. Consumer festivals usually charge a modest entry ticket aimed at the public, while trade fairs run on a different model built around industry access, so budget and expectations should match the event you choose.
The 2026 harvest and price backdrop
Brazil is the world’s largest coffee producer, and its harvest sets the tone for the year. The main crop is picked roughly between May and September, so by the time SIC opens in November the size and quality of the 2026 harvest are largely known.
Brazil grows two main types: arabica, concentrated in states such as Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo, and robusta, known locally as conilon, centred in Espirito Santo. The mix and the weather in each cycle shape what buyers see at the fairs.
Prices have been a live topic for Brazilian coffee in recent seasons, driven by weather and global demand. Rather than fixate on a single figure, visitors are better served by asking exhibitors how the current cycle compares with the last.
Weather is the wild card every season. Frost or drought in the growing regions can dent the arabica crop and move global prices, which is why producers and buyers watch the forecast as closely as the harvest itself.
Brazil’s role as the swing supplier means its harvest ripples worldwide. A large crop can ease global prices, while a short one can lift them, so the numbers discussed at the November fair carry weight far beyond the country’s own cafes.
Planning a visit as a coffee tourist
For a traveller, the logistics are straightforward. The Sao Paulo festival used the Pavilhao da Bienal in Ibirapuera, an easy location within the city; that edition, though, has already ended for 2026.
The next planning target is Belo Horizonte in November. Expominas sits in the Minas Gerais capital, a city well connected by air and road, and the surrounding state is dotted with coffee farms that welcome visitors outside the fair itself.
Book early around 11 to 13 November if SIC is the goal. Trade fairs of this size pull in demand for hotels and flights, and the coffee crowd tends to move together.
For visitors combining the fair with a wider trip, Minas Gerais offers more than coffee. The state is known for its colonial towns, mountain roads and food, making a November visit around SIC an easy anchor for a longer itinerary.
What the trade watches
Beyond the tastings, the fairs are where the Brazilian coffee industry takes its own temperature. Buyers gauge quality from the new harvest, producers compare notes on costs, and exporters read demand from overseas roasters.
Sustainability and traceability have become standing themes, as European and North American buyers ask more questions about where beans come from and how they are grown. Competitions, meanwhile, spotlight the specialty end of the market.
For readers following Brazilian agriculture more broadly, the coffee calendar is a useful window onto a crop that remains one of the country’s signature exports.
Certification schemes and origin labels increasingly feature on the show floor. For small producers, a strong showing at a fair like SIC can open doors to export buyers who value traceability as much as taste.
Beyond the two headline events
The Sao Paulo festival and SIC are the two biggest fixtures, but they are not the only coffee dates in Brazil. Regional fairs, cupping competitions and producer open days run through the year, especially across Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo.
For a visitor building a trip, these smaller events can be more rewarding than the big halls. They put you closer to the farms, often with tastings straight from the current harvest and time to talk with the people who grew it.
The simple rule is to plan around the calendar’s two anchors and fill in from there. With the Sao Paulo show behind us for 2026, November in Belo Horizonte is the next fixed point to build around.
Timing a visit to the harvest can also pay off. Arriving in the second half of the year, when picking is done and the new crop is being graded, means the freshest coffee and the liveliest conversations about how the season went.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the Sao Paulo Coffee Festival in 2026?
The 2026 edition ran from 26 to 28 June at the Pavilhao da Bienal in Ibirapuera Park, Sao Paulo. It has already taken place and drew a record of about 17,500 visitors with more than 150 brands. The next comparable national date is the Semana Internacional do Cafe in November.
What is the Semana Internacional do Cafe?
The Semana Internacional do Cafe, or SIC, is a large coffee trade fair held in Belo Horizonte. In 2026 it runs from 11 to 13 November at Expominas, in Minas Gerais. It bills itself as Brazil’s largest coffee event and gathers producers, roasters, exporters and equipment makers for business, competitions and seminars.
Which event is better for a casual coffee lover?
The Sao Paulo festival is the more consumer-friendly of the two, built around tastings, demonstrations and talks. SIC in Belo Horizonte is primarily a trade fair, though parts are open to the public. If your aim is to enjoy and learn rather than to do business, the Sao Paulo format is the easier fit, but that edition is over for 2026.
Where is SIC held and how do I get there?
SIC takes place at Expominas in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais. The city is well connected by air and road, and the surrounding state is a major coffee-growing region with farms that welcome visitors. Because a fair of this size drives demand for hotels and flights, booking early around 11 to 13 November is advisable.
What is the 2026 coffee harvest context?
Brazil is the world’s largest coffee producer, and its main crop is harvested roughly between May and September. By the time SIC opens in November, the size and quality of the 2026 harvest are largely known. Prices have been an active topic in recent seasons, so visitors are best served by asking exhibitors how the current cycle compares.
Related reading
- Brazil’s coffee belt: a guide to Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo
- Specialty coffee in Brazil: from farm to cup
- Agri-business calendar: Brazil’s major 2026 trade fairs
- How the global coffee price shapes Brazilian exports
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error