[Baek Cheol-hyeon’s Focus] AFPRO 2026 Missing the ‘Substance’… It Must Create a Stage for ‘Real Business,’ Not Just for Show

‘Agri-Food Tech Startup Fair (AFPRO 2026),’ held for three days from the 15th at COEX in Seoul, concluded on a record-breaking scale with 195 companies and 360 booths. Spectacular attractions, including the ‘AX Special Hall’ showcasing cutting-edge AI robots and physical AI-based smart agriculture technologies, were more than enough to capture visitors’ attention. 

Although the purpose of ‘AFPRO 2026’ is to exhibit and promote the technologies of promising agri-food startups and support investment attraction, market expansion, and networking as Korea’s largest startup fair specialized in the agri-food sector, voices of disappointment emerged over a program composition that did not match the event’s intent. Despite the title of ‘Korea’s largest agtech fair,’ it was difficult to find B2B buyers and overseas investors whose presence is directly tied to these companies’ survival.

The reason startups invest enormous material and human resources to participate in fairs is to meet buyers with purchasing power, open up distribution channels, and attract overseas buyers to expand into global markets. In particular, with exports in Korea’s smart farm sector in the first half of this year plunging 27.3% year-on-year (to $38.7 million) due to external 악재 such as instability in the Middle East, this fair should have been like welcome rain in a drought for related companies seeking an export breakthrough.

However, it was hard to find a sophisticated one-on-one business matching program targeting B2B stakeholders or overseas buyers, and the exhibition hall was crowded mainly with weekend homemakers, general visitors, or people from the same industry. A representative from smart farm company A, met on site, expressed disappointment, saying, “There were almost no foreign buyers or B2B business partners, so it was difficult to find practical business touchpoints,” while another industry insider also pointed out, “It remained an event centered on ordinary visitors and failed to achieve the goal of developing overseas sales channels.” 

This is why AFPRO, hosted and organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency, can hardly avoid criticism that it has degenerated into a simple B2C-centered ‘experiential exhibition.’
There is also a perception that the event merely repeated past AFPRO programs as they were.  For the government’s smart agriculture expansion policy and export promotion strategy to bear fruit on the ground, a fundamental improvement in the fair’s operating paradigm appears necessary.

The organizers should move to revamp the next event, including strengthening the attraction of overseas buyers, based on the detailed performance indicator tally to be compiled in August. First, the agtech zone and the foodtech zone should be clearly separated to create a professional business environment. In addition, the foodtech sector should be organized so that it can display technology more intuitively, rather than stopping at food manufacturing and exhibition under the name of a technology showcase. Furthermore, instead of being obsessed with inflating visitor numbers, the organizers must boldly secure a budget to directly invite targeted overseas buyers and operate a dedicated B2B one-on-one matching support system.

An official from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs in charge of this event said, “This event included around 20 side events, including buyer invitation programs, as well as programs such as a seminar on strategies for entering developing countries,” but added, “We will improve and supplement future fairs so that participating companies can further expand their practical business touchpoints.”

The core of agricultural advancement lies not in technology development itself, but in ‘commercialization’—that the technology is implanted in the field and sold in the market. If Korea’s agri-food startups are to grow beyond the domestic market and become leading players in the global agtech market, the government and organizing institutions must stop being satisfied with visitor figures and instead create a ‘real stage’ that opens practical sales channels.