South Korea: Dairy and Products Annual
In 2016, overall local raw milk products decreased 4.5 percent by a volume of 2 million metric tons (MT), but per capita volume consumption continued to increase to 76.4 kilograms in 2016. Since the FMD outbreak in 2010, local raw milk production has rebounded but has outpaced slower growing demand. Consumers who continue to drink milk will shift to reduced fat milk from full-fat fresh milk. The share of reduced-fat fresh milk is projected to be 19 percent in 2020, up from 15 percent in 2016. Low fat milk, organic milk and fortified milk posted a positive performance, while sales of fresh milk are set to decline. The cheese categories recorded positive value growth in 2016. The introduction of different types of processed cheese led to growth. The manufacturers offered diverse sliced cheese products targeted at adults, including cheese for instant noodles, cheese for rice with garlic and black sliced cheese with squid ink. Less expensive NFDM imports and over production of fresh milk have resulted in inventories remaining high in 2016, even though local NFDM production amounted to 8,540 MT, a 50 percent decrease from the previous year and consumption increased. In 2016, NFDM imports decreased by 3 percent to 20,611 MT compared to 2015.
