Browse Data and Analysis

E-commerce is one of the largest retail channels and an essential component of the overall consumer market in Korea. Food related online sales in 2023 including food, agricultural products, and food delivery services was once again the largest category, occupying about 30 percent of the total online sales for three consecutive years.

Korea’s marketing year (MY) 2024/25 citrus production is forecast down 2.6 percent to 565,000 MT, a 10-year low, on gradually declining acreage and adverse weather conditions. Jeju Island, where nearly all Korean citrus is grown, experienced a prolonged summer heat wave lasting into mid-September, followed by excessive fall rain, which caused fruit cracking and rot.

Korea depends heavily on imports to meet the demand for dried fruits, though overall demand has seen a slight decrease over the last five years. In 2023, the United States held roughly 53% of the market share for imported dried fruit.

In 2022 (the latest official data available), South Korea's sales in the HRI food service sector reached 177.12 trillion KRW (137.1 billion USD), a 17.48 percent increase from 2021, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. In 2023, monthly per capita spending on the HRI food service rose to 179,648 KRW (139.1 USD), up 10.66 percent from 2022 and 30.65 percent from 2021.

In the final stages of a Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) outbreak that has resulted in the culling of over 30 million birds, South Korea has opened its market for the first time...

The Ministry of Food & Drug Safety (MFDS) implemented the Special Act on Safety Management of Imported Food (hereinafter referred to as the Special Act) on February 4, 2016.

The updates include the preregistration of foreign food facilities and livestock establishments including egg and dairy plants, a mandatory review of certification body for certification marks...

The United States was the largest supplier of agricultural, food, fishery and forestry products to Korea, with a 20 percent market share in 2015.