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Buy Korean Food
High expectations are being placed on
trition information on food labels, Korean
Korean foods in the Netherlands, an agri-
seaweed snacks are becoming popular. In
cultural power in Europe.
contrast to the past, a lot of seaweed snack
Mr. Valon (whose responsibilities in-
products low in sodium are entering the
clude importing fresh Korean mush-
US market one after another, and they re-
rooms) explains, “Korean agri-products
seem to be emerging as a trend after a series
of promotions in the European market
and thanks to the popularity of K-Pop.
European buyers think that Korean agriproducts
are well-packaged and the design
is sophisticated. A lot of new Korean
agri-products are rapidly entering the
European market.”
He adds, “Many local buyers are very
interested in both the Korean fresh and
processed foods.
The strongest point of Korean foods is
hygiene and food safety. Recently, we’ve
Korean Agriproducts
Get a Good
Response
Thanks to
K-Pop
Hope to
Import
Korean
Fresh Foods
Valon Bahtiri,
Sales Manager of MitroFresh B.V.
discovered that many European consumers
are looking for Korean strawberries because
they heard that they are very delicious.”
Filipinos think that the sweet and salty
Jung Seung-ju,
Executive Director of H-Mart
Mr. Jung says, “In addition to
‘Gangnam Style,’ there is a ‘K-Food
style’ in the US. The timing is excellent
for boosting the consumption of Korean
foods in the US.”
As more and more American consumers
are reading the ingredient and nu-
Psy Wave
and K-Pop
Are So
Popular
Good
Prospects
for Large
Exports of
Traditional
K-Sauces
and Mandu
ceive recognition as healthy snacks.
Mr. Jung picked the traditional Korean
sauces and mandu (Korean dumplings) as
items that have a high potential to be imported
in the US in large quantities. He explains
that interest in Korean cuisine
(Hansik) among American consumers is
rising steadily. What needs to be done is
the dissemination of recipes for various
foods that use gochujang (red pepper
paste) and doenjang (soybean paste), so
that the consumption of Korean sauces is
increased. Mandu is made with abundant
vegetables and meat, and it is easy to cook.
More people are consuming instant foods
at home and, with this trend, the competitiveness
of mandu in the US also rises.
Korean soy sauce matches grilled foods
well. Local buyer Ms. Katrina, manager of
Mr. Lee emphasizes the merits of
South Supermarket, says, “Compared to
Malaysia as a new export market for K-
the previous years, many more Filipino
foods. According to Mr. Lee, “Muslim re-
consumers are looking for Korean agri-
gions account for 25 percent of the popu-
Shin Jong-chul, CEO of ASSI PHILS Trading Corp. (top)
According to Mr. Shin, the sauce market
in the Philippines is growing, and import
of Korean soy sauce (ganjang in
Korean) is also on the rise. The grilled
food culture such as barbeque is highly
developed in the Philippines, and many
Slightly
Salted
Korean Soy
Sauce Is
Popular and
Soybean
Milk
Products
Are a
Promising
Export Item
products. Korean sauces like ganjang are
popular items.”
Korean dishes such as japchae (glass
noodles with sautéed vegetables) and bulgogi
(thin slices of beef marinated in soy
sauce) have captivated the tastes of the
Filipinos, and accordingly the sauces for
Korean cuisine have also come into the
spotlight. Ms. Katrina experienced the
taste of Korean soybean milk products for
the first time at .
She has given favorable comments on the
taste and is sure the Korean soybean milk
will emerge as a hot item in the
Philippines.
lated world, and the size of the Muslim
food market is approaching USD$700 billion.
By targeting Malaysia, a hub of halal,
it’s not difficult to increase the market
share of Korean food around the world.”
But export of Korean food to Malaysia
is still in the initial stages. Only a few
Korean foods, such as Shinramen of
Nongshim, have obtained the halal certification
so far. Moreover, the regulations
for halal food will be changed next year.
Mr. Lee says, “For individual companies
to obtain halal certification is not an
easy task because the costs are high and
the procedures are very complicated. That
Can
Succeed in
Muslim Food
Market if It
Obtains
Halal
Certification
Matthew Lee, Managing Director of KMT Trading SDN BHD (right)
is why the Korean government should try
to bring an official halal certification organization
to Korea or support the Korean
food exporters by offering consultations on
halal certification.
16 Korea AgraFood Issue 206 Nov. 2012 17