ⓒ KBS News

This year, the Korean traditional holiday Chuseok falls on Monday, September 24. Koreans here will enjoy the traditional full-moon autumn celebration with families and relatives and share delicious food. Increasingly, those same dishes are gaining fans in other countries. Here is Lee In-chul(이인철), director of the Real Good Economic Institute, to discuss the growing popularity of K-food the world over.

K-food is expected to reach 10 trillion won in exports this year. K-food products, including ramen or instant noodles, Choco Pie, dumplings and dried seaweed, represent the “taste of Korea” all around the world. According to data released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs as well as the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation, exports of Korean agro-fisheries products last year reached 9.15 billion dollars, or roughly 9.89 trillion won. It’s a 6.5 percent increase from a year earlier and 2.5 times the 3.7 billion dollars posted ten years ago in 2007. 

By region, Japan was the biggest importer of Korean food in 2017, as Korean food exports to Japan amounted to over 2 billion dollars, followed by China with 1.3 billion dollars. The United States came in third, with Korea’s food shipments to the U.S. surpassing 1 billion dollars for the first time in 2017. Apart from the top three importers of Korean food, Thailand, Russia, and Ireland merit attention in terms of growth in Korea’s food exports. Food exports to Thailand jumped 43.1 percent last year, while those to Russia, Ireland, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Indonesia also showed double-digit gains. And these exports are finding consumers beyond the ethnic Korean communities abroad, especially dried seaweed, called “gim 김” in Korean, and instant ramen.

Last year, the top selling Korean food products overseas were dried seaweed and ramen. 513 million dollars worth of Korean dried seaweed were shipped overseas in 2017, up 45 percent from the previous year. It was the first time that annual gim exports topped the 500 million mark. By volume, 20-thousand tons of gim were exported last year, nearly a seven-fold increase in ten years. Korean dried seaweed is exported to 109 countries, and people around the world enjoy seasoned dried seaweed as a healthy snack. Some estimates suggest that half of the dried seaweed consumed around the world is from South Korea. In addition, exports of Korean-made ramen reached 381 million dollars last year, rising from 290 million dollars in 2016.

Industry insiders sometimes call dried seaweed the semiconductor of Korea’s food industry, a reference to the high number of global sales. The global popularity of Korean ramen is also worth mentioning, with shipments last year exceeding 300 million dollars. Nongshim 농심, a leading Korean food exporter, inked a deal with Walmart that will make Nongshim’s instant Shin Ramen available at stores across the country. Another instant ramen, “Dosirak”, made by Korea’s Paldo, posted over 200 million dollars in sales in Russia last year, accounting for 60 percent of the nation’s cup noodle market. 

Korean food and beverage makers are performing pretty well overseas. Lotte Chilsung Beverage exported 1.24 million boxes of its carbonated beverage “Milkis” to Russia last year, up 55 percent from a year ago. Considering that tropical fruits are hard to find in Russia, the Korean company rolled out 10 different fruit flavors, including banana, with the same brand name. The strategy proved successful. 

Meanwhile, the company’s canned coffee brand “Let’s Be” has been hugely popular in Russia, claiming 90 percent of the local market last year. Also, “Banana Flavored Milk” and “Melona,” a melon-flavored popsicle – both made by Korean company Binggeurae빙그레 – are expanding their global presence. Banana Flavored Milk is exported to ten countries, gaining popularity in China, in particular. The milk drink first became available in China in 2008, and its sales in the country topped 18 million dollars last year. In another successful example, fast-food chain Lotteria is operating a total of 225 stores in Vietnam to take the top spot in the fast-food market of the Southeast Asian country. 

In addition, CJ CheilJedang’s 제일제당’s “Bibigo Dumpling” ranked first in the U.S. processed dumpling market last year, while Orion’s “Choco Pie” came in first in the Chinese brand power index for the second consecutive year in 2017. Binggeurae 빙그레 has been selling its Melona ice cream bar to 16 countries since the product’s first appearance in Hawaii in 1995, taking the lead in Korea’s ice cream exports. 

Paris Baguette, a bakery chain operated by Korean food giant SPC Group, is operating some 320 stores in various countries, including the U.S., Vietnam, Singapore, and of course, France. Clearly, K-food exports are expanding in scope and selection, from agro-fisheries products and processed food to ice creams and fast food. In such competitive industry, how have Korean firms been able to distinguish themselves abroad?

The image of healthy Korean food is contributing greatly to its popularity overseas. Also, consumers praise the relatively low cost and high quality of Korean food exports relative to Japanese alternatives. The popularity of Korean pop culture overseas or the Korean Wave is believed to help Korea’s exports as well. And the companies themselves have effectively localized their marketing strategies.

Many Korean food makers feel that the domestic market has peaked in terms of growth, so they are actively exploring foreign markets. Through constant research and development, as well as highly advanced technology, they have developed new food items that match palates in different countries. All these factors help explain the popularity of certain Korean foods abroad.

The Korean food industry has been working hard on analyzing the growing number of health-conscious consumers in the world and identifying favored ingredients and flavors in particular regions. Through extensive research and innovation, food manufacturers on the peninsula have diversified food items and even packaging, contributing to rapid market growth. But there are yet obstacles to surmount. 

At present, China, Japan, and the U.S. make up more than 50 percent of K-food exports, with the top ten export countries accounting for over 75 percent. For this reason, Korean food firms were hit hard by China’s trade retaliation over South Korea’s decision to deploy a U.S. missile defense system, as their sales in China plummeted from the second quarter of last year. 

Fortunately, South Korea and China managed to resolve the diplomatic discord, but the episode underscored the importance of diversifying the food industry’s export market. The government launched a task force late last year and selected 20 countries in Southeast Asia, South America, and Africa as promising exports markets. The government has since conducted expositions and other promotional events. As part of market diversification efforts, it is essential for Korean food exporters to earn halal certification for their products. With 1.6 billion Muslims around the world, the global halal food market amounted to 1 trillion dollars last year and is estimated to grow to 2 trillion in 2020. The Korean food industry must spur efforts to tap this market. 

K-food has been successful both domestically and internationally. But it is still necessary to find more markets and diversify export items. Korean food makers should not rest on their laurels but rather aggressively seek inroads into more foreign markets.