CADEG – Mercado Municipal do Rio de Janeiro

CADEG (Centro de Abastecimento do Estado da Guanabara) is Rio de Janeiro's municipal wholesale food market, founded in 1962 and located in the Benfica neighbourhood. It occupies around 100,000 square metres with 706 shops and halls, operating as a reference wholesale venue for gastronomy professionals with dried salt cod, cereals, fresh produce, pulps, dairy, beverages, disposables and decoration, alongside the largest flower distribution in the state. It became Rio's official public heritage in 2018 and receives around 10,000 visitors a day.

Beyond fresh food wholesaling, CADEG concentrates distributors of dry goods, packaged groceries, beverages, disposable food-service supplies and flowers — a practical place to study Rio's hospitality supply chain. Chinese exporters of food machinery, packaging equipment, kitchenware, tableware and food ingredients can use it to identify local distributors and importers. Wholesale activity peaks in the early morning, when restaurants, bars and small retailers come to restock.