K-food exports during Jan.-Sept. period rise to record high of 8.5 bln won

SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Yonhap) -- Accumulative exports of South Korean food products for this year so far reached an all-time high, customs agency data showed Tuesday.

The country's exports of food products during the January-September period grew 8.9 percent from a year ago to 8.5 billion won (US$5.9 million), according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.

By category, outbound shipments of processed foods, such as instant ramyeon and beverages, rose 6.7 percent on-year to 5.2 billion won.

Processed foods were the most exported product, accounting for 61.3 percent of the total.

Exports of seafood products jumped 11.2 percent on-year to 2.3 billion won, thanks to the popularity of dried seaweed products -- known in Korean as "gim" -- the customs agency said.

Outbound shipments of agricultural goods rose 5.6 percent on-year, while those of livestock products jumped 50.3 percent during the cited period.

The United States, China and Japan were the top three destinations, accounting for 50.2 percent of total shipments.

Korean food products were also popular among the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) member countries, with 81.5 percent of total exports going to the 20 member nations.

"We expect the popularity of the Netflix animation 'Kpop Demon Hunters' and the APEC summit to have a positive impact on K-foods and their brand recognition," the customs agency said.

fairydust@yna.co.kr
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