105 participating companies showcase food and daily necessities at the Fair for Products Produced by the Severely Disabled

105 facilities producing products for people with severe disabilities participated and presented food, etc.

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Seong Seong-ho = The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on the 6th that it will hold the '2026 Expo for Products for the Severely Disabled' at the first exhibition hall of the aT Center in Yangjae-dong, Seoul for two days until the 7th.

At the expo, which is in its third year this year, 105 facilities producing products for people with severe disabilities will participate and showcase foods such as confectionery and bakery products, processed foods, coffee and tea, eco-friendly household goods, and electrical and electronic products. Professional cleaning, home appliance cleaning, and quarantine services are also available.

At the expo, one-on-one purchasing consultations between public institutions and production facilities will also be held to support public institutions in fulfilling their obligation to preferentially purchase products produced by people with severe disabilities.

As a result of connecting public institutions and production facilities in advance, 59 public institutions and 76 production facilities participated, resulting in approximately 240 consultations.

In accordance with the Special Act on Preferential Purchase of Products Produced by Persons with Severe Disabilities, public institutions must purchase more than 1.1% of the total purchase amount of products, services, etc. from facilities producing products by persons with severe disabilities every year.

As of 2025, the preferential purchase rate of 1,030 public institutions was 1.12%. As of last year, 15,682 disabled workers (14,297 severely disabled) were working in 819 production facilities.

At the expo, meritorious people and organizations that contributed to the activation of the preferential purchase system for products produced by the severely disabled will receive a commendation from the Minister of Health and Welfare (total of 30 points).

Based on 2025 performance, the Korea Council for Social Welfare (KRW 507 million, 8.05%), Seoul Medical Center in Seoul (KRW 704 million, 6.07%), Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do (KRW 9.72 billion, 4.57%), and Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KRW 1.72 billion, 4.01%) with high priority purchase performance ratio and amount will receive the grand prize.

The National Museum and Cultural Foundation and the Northeast Asian History Foundation, which have significantly improved their preferential purchase performance, and the National Tax Service and Gunpo City, Gyeonggi-do, which have exceeded the mandatory purchase ratio for more than five consecutive years, will receive excellence awards.

Eun Seong-ho, head of the Population and Social Service Policy Department at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, "The product we choose can be a work opportunity for people with severe disabilities, and furthermore, it can become the basis for independence and social participation." He added, "Through the fair, we hope to directly experience the quality and value of the products and further spread the valuable consumption of choosing products produced by people with severe disabilities."