FAS/Seoul Monitoring of Media Reporting on Agricultural Issues 

Today's Date: Monday,  October 28,  2024

For Coverage:  October  1 ~ 24, 2024

Fresh Food Exports Decrease Despite Increased Agricultural Food Exports
https://www.news1.kr/politics/assembly/5575191
Summary:  While Korea’s agricultural food exports have been growing every year, only processed food exports, which mainly use imported ingredients, have increased. According to Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, agricultural food exports increased from $7.027 billion (4.053 million tons) in 2019 to $9.223 billion (4.151 million tons) in 2023. During the same period, the proportion of processed food in agricultural food exports increased from 84.2% to 88%. On the other hand, the proportion of fresh food, which is directly related to farmers’ income, decreased from 15.8% to 12%. The top 10 export items among processed food included instant noodles, beverages, coffee, sugar, biscuits, and soju, all of which use imported ingredients.

Customers in Their 50s and 60s Becoming Key Buyers at Convenience Stores
https://www.kmib.co.kr/article/view.asp?arcid=1729672585&code=11151400&cp=nv
Summary:  Convenience stores have seen an increased number of customers in their 50s and 60s. According to data released by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), during the first half of 2024, sales by people in their 50s and 60s grew by 18.3% and 21.4% respectively, compared to two years ago. On the other hand, sales by people in their 20s have decreased by 11.5%. Key customers of convenience stores have been shifting from younger generations to mid and senior generations. The 40s age group purchased the most at the two major convenience store chains (CU and GS25) in 2023. Industry insiders commented that, unlike in the past, offerings at convenience stores are not just cheap but also of good quality, which attracts a wider customer base amid the high inflation era.

Lotte PePero Makes Its Debut at Costco in the United States
https://www.sedaily.com/NewsView/2DFOZ6R53O
Summary:  Lotte Wellfood, a Korean international confectionery company, announced on the 24^th that Lotte Pepero, which is chocolate covered biscuit stick, has entered into Costco in the northeastern United States. According to Lotte Wellfood, it has been selling a set of Pepero almond, white cookie, and crunchy since October 21 at Costco. It also plans to introduce the product to Costco stores in the southeast and west, starting in the northeastern United States. An official from Lotte Wellfood said that they have made great efforts to enter the U.S. Costco and Try the World (snack subscription service) and will continue to be aggressive in their marketing in the United States, the world’s largest consumer market.

The Most Cases of Overseas Hazardous Food Products Last Year Occurred in Confectionery, Bread, and Rice Cakes
http://www.foodnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=110402
Summary:  According to the analysis of hazardous food information that occurred overseas last year, one out of ten cases came from confectionery, bread, and rice cakes and the most hazardous factor was microorganism, followed by pesticide residues and unlabeled allergenic ingredients. The Korea Food Safety Information Service (KFSIS) released the ‘2023 Global Food Safety Trend Report’, which analyzed domestic and international food safety information such as recalls, sales bans, and reinforced monitoring in 2023. According to the report, a total of 25,541 domestic and international food safety information cases were collected last year, of which 12,686 cases were overseas hazardous food information, a 3.9% decrease from 13,200 cases in the previous year and a 13.4% decrease from 14,653 cases in 2021.  Last year, the top instances of overseas hazardous food information were from France (1,996 cases, 15.7%), the United States (1,173 cases, 9.2%), Japan (1,072 cases, 8.5%), and China (1,010 cases, 8.0%). In terms of food type, 1,284 cases occurred most in confectionery, bakery, and rice cakes (10.1%), followed by processed and packaged meat products (1,067 cases, 8.4%), processed agricultural products (1,039 cases, 8.2%), health foods (970 cases, 7.6%), and dairy products (617 cases, 4.9%). In terms of causing factors, microorganism accounted for 2,989 cases (23.6%), followed by pesticide residues (1,940 cases, 15.3%) and failure to label allergenic ingredients (1,273 cases, 10%). KFSIS Director Lee said that for imported food safety management and K-food globalization, they will need to continue to quickly collect and analyze food safety incidents that occurred overseas and overseas regulatory information to provide supporting data to establish a domestic food safety management system and promote K-food exports.

BBQ Chicken Opens a Store in Indiana
http://www.foodnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=110296
Summary:  Genesis BBQ, which operates BBQ Chicken, announced on the 17^th that it opened a BBQ store in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. With the opening of the BBQ store in Indiana following Tennessee, Nebraska, Arkansas this year, BBQ Chicken has made its way to 30 states out of 50 states in the United States. BBQ Indiana Castleton store is 280 square meters with 70 seats and will offer chicken menus such as ‘Golden Fried’, ‘Cheeseling’, and ‘Gangjeong’, along with kimchi fried rice and tteokbokki to introduce Korean flavors to local consumers in the United States.

Lumpy Skin Disease Occurred at a Livestock Farm in Gangwon Province
https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20241010174400030?input=1195m
Summary:  The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) announced on October 10^th that a positive case of bovine lumpy skin disease (LSD) was discovered at a livestock farm in Yangyang, Gangwon Province. This is the ninth outbreak of the disease in domestic livestock farms this year.  According to MAFRA, it has cordoned off the affected farm and implemented quarantine measures to prevent the further spread of the disease. In addition, LSD-infected cows from this farm will be slaughtered in accordance with the government guidance.

Korean Air Increases Use of Local Ingredients in In-flight Meals
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/tech/2024/10/419_383868.html
Summary:  Korean Air announced that it has increased the use of domestic food ingredients in its in-flight meals to support local farming and fishing communities. According to Korean Air, 64 percent of its food ingredient supplies in 2024 were sourced from domestic producers and it also plans to raise the proportion of domestic food ingredients to support the agricultural sector, which is facing challenges due to low domestic consumption. Korean Air’s decision was driven by a request from a lawmaker, who urged airline companies to use more domestic ingredients for their meals on flights as the demand for international travel is on a swift rise to pre-pandemic levels.

Korea’s Rice Production to Fall for Third Year in 2024
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2024/10/371_383743.html
Summary:  According to Statistics Korea, Korea’s rice output is projected to fall for the third consecutive year in 2024, due to the decrease in cultivation area. This year, rice production is expected to decrease 1.2% year-on-year to 3.66 million tons. This prediction comes as the combined size of rice paddies slid 1.5% year-on-year to a record low of 697,714 hectares, as the government has been implementing measures to balance supply and demand of rice, such as giving subsidies to farmers who raise “strategic crops,” including wheat, beans, and rice flour. Rice is a key staple food for Koreans, but its consumption has been on a steady decline in recent decades due mainly to changes in diet and eating habits. Per capita average annual rice consumption fell to an all-time low of 56.4kg in 2023, compared with a record high of 136.4kg in 1970.

K-Food Exports up to September of This Year Reached $7.375 Billion
http://www.foodnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=110109
Summary:  According to preliminary data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA), Korean agricultural foods (K-Food) exports for the first nine months of this year amounted to $7.375 billion, an 8.3% increase from the same period last year. This marked the largest exports of all time, through September and showed growth for the 13^th consecutive month compared to the same period last year. Out of top export items, ramen, snacks, beverages, and processed foods from rice recorded an all-time high in exports. In particular, exports of processed foods from rice, such as frozen kimbap, instant rice, and tteokbokki, increased by 41.6%, to $217.9 million, from the same period last year. Among these, exports to the United States, the largest export market for processed foods from rice, reached $126 million, up 58% year-on-year. Ramen exports, which is the country’s top exported food and agricultural product, amounted to $103 million in September, exceeding the cumulative exports of $900 million at the end of September. MAFRA said that they plan to support export expansion by discovering key strategic products, conducting intensive promotions, and hosting domestic and international exhibitions for the remainder of this year.

Mass-Produced Kimchi Sales Surge amid Rising Costs
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/biz/2024/10/175_383866.html
Summary:  Domestic market watchers in Korea said that sales of mass-produced kimchi are soaring as an increasing number of households find home-made kimchi too expensive due to a spike in ingredient prices. Due to longer-than-expected summer heat waves this year, napa cabbage and radish prices have surged up to 50% from a year ago. According to GS Shop, a TV home shopping affiliate of GS Group, 5,000 packs of kimchi made by Jongga, Daesang Group’s kimchi maker, sold out in under five minutes after being featured in a commercial last weekend. GS Shop said that the sales during this period averaged 53 million won ($40,000) per minute, the highest figure for any product it sold this year. Similarly, CJ CheilJedang, the producer of Bibigo kimchi, said that 41 of its 49 varieties were sold out. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp. (aT), the retail price of one head of napa cabbage reached 9,200 won in the first week of October, up 32.7% from a year ago and radish retailed at 3,859 won, up 50.3% from a year ago and 29.7% from the annual average.