Korean Seafood Trade Mission to Seafood Expo North America 2017 Leads to $11 million in Potential Export Sales

ATO Seoul recruited mission members and coordinated the visit of six Korean seafood importers to the Seafood Expo North America (SENA) held in Boston, MA, March 19-21, 2017. The program allowed the importers to meet suppliers of various American seafood products and to gain a better understanding of the U.S. seafood sector. According to the mission participants surveyed right after the activity, the trade mission resulted in $11 million of potential purchases from U.S. seafood suppliers over the next 12 months. In calendar year 2016, Korea imported $227 million of U.S. seafood, slightly down from $233 million in 2015.

Natural Product Expo West (NPEW) 2017 Show

ATO recruited and supported seven Korean organic and natural product importers to attend the Natural Product Expo West (NPEW) 2017 Show held in Anaheim, California March 10-12, 2017, to develop new opportunities for trade. The post activity survey resulted in a $1.31 million sales estimate from mission members over the next 12 months. The products of interest included organic cheese products, organic cultured butter, 100% grass fed cheese and refined coconut oil products for food manufacturing, as well as, organic vegetable chips, cookies, fruit juices, snacks, dried fruits and nuts. Market tours were arranged with input from the mission members to visit retail and wholesale outlets to understand market trends and to identify new products to import. ATO developed new Korean-buyer contacts who expressed interest in using ATO services to improve their results at this trade show in the future.

Northwest Wine Seminar, Tasting, Food Pairing Event, Plaza Hotel, Seoul / February 6, 2017

A group of 14 wine producers from the states of Oregon and Washington visited Seoul under the Northwest Wine Coalition (NWC) annual Asia trade mission. The NWC trade missions have played an instrumental role over the years in expanding export opportunities for producers in the Northwest wine region by promoting the quality and value of the wine that the states of Oregon and Washington have to offer to the Korean wine trade. In addition to educational seminars and a grand trade tasting event, the NWC trade mission this year offered an upscale food-wine pairing experience under the sponsorship of the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), Potatoes USA, and the Cranberry Marketing Committee. Reflecting increased interest in Oregon and Washington wine in the market, all the events enjoyed a heavy traffic of attendees and generated serious dialogues between the suppliers and the Korean wine trade. American wine exports to Korea amounted to $22 million in 2016. Although California currently accounts for 90 percent of American wine exports, there is a growing opportunity for Oregon and Washington wine in Korea as wine consumers are interested in expanding their taste and experience. For more detailed information about the Korean wine market, please refer to the Korea Wine Market Report published by ATO Seoul (available from ATO Seoul homepage under Market Report section).