| By The Asia Business Daily

Ministry of Agriculture Unveils Multi-Pronged Approach Targeting $21 Billion Goal

The South Korean government has announced plans to establish a comprehensive “export support framework” that coordinates resources across relevant ministries to accelerate K-Food (agricultural, livestock, and fisheries products) export growth. The initiative aims to create a sustainable foundation for K-Food expansion by providing Korean culinary education to international chefs and penetrating promising markets such as the Middle East through halal-certified products. These combined efforts target increasing K-Food exports to $21 billion by 2030.

Record-Breaking Performance Sets Stage for Ambitious Goals

On December 23, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs convened the “K-Food Global Vision Declaration Ceremony” at the AT Center in Seoul’s Yangjae-dong district, where officials presented the “Global K-Food Export Expansion Strategy” outlining these objectives.

Through November of this year, cumulative K-Food exports reached $12.34 billion, establishing a new historical record. The annual target stands at $13.65 billion, representing a 6.2% increase over the previous year. The government’s objective to expand K-Food exports to $21 billion by 2030 requires maintaining 9% annual growth through that period.

A Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs representative characterized this as an ambitious objective, exceeding double the export growth of $3.6 billion achieved over the past five years (2020-2025). The official added, “To accomplish this, we will actively implement five major strategies in coordination with relevant ministries: identifying and developing appealing products, addressing export obstacles through a unified system, integrating K-Initiatives, advancing digital and technological innovation, and expanding into promising markets including the Middle East.”

Culinary Education Program Targets Sustained Global Demand

Sura School and International Partnerships

The government intends to leverage private-sector Korean culinary education and experiential infrastructure by introducing an open-lab format program called “Sura School” next year, offering Korean cuisine curricula for international audiences to foster sustained overseas K-Food consumption. Korean culinary courses will also be established and administered at prestigious international culinary institutions including the Culinary Institute of America (USA), Le Cordon Bleu (France), and ALMA (Italy).

Region-Specific Strategic Products

Export priority items will be designated and intensively supported for each region and market, considering overseas preferences, product competitiveness, and agricultural co-development potential. In primary export markets such as the United States, China, and Japan, emphasis will center on barbecue sauces complementing meat dishes, traditional spirits, and fruit concentrates like yuzu and omija. The government will broaden support for potential items based on local market dynamics.

For the Middle East, recently identified as a promising market, efforts will concentrate on developing halal Korean beef, fresh fruits including grapes and strawberries, and additional products that achieved initial market entry in October. Regarding the European Union, high value-added health foods and heat-treated processed meat products will serve as strategic items.

International Development Aid Integration

To secure a potential K-Food consumer foundation, the government will support development of K-Food aid products such as nutrition-enhanced rice, ready-to-eat meals (including porridge), infant formula, beverages, and energy bars, customized to local conditions such as electricity and drinking water shortages, by connecting international cooperation projects (ODA) to corporate requirements and Korean rice production.

Public-Private Collaboration Through Export Planning Group

To ensure private companies spearhead overseas expansion of strategic items with government backing, a public-private K-Food Export Planning Group will be formed to identify promising K-Food products and develop region-specific strategic programs. The planning group will designate 35 private-sector representatives from these fields: export companies (fresh foods, processed foods, food technology, agri-industry), culture, tourism and content, overseas certifications including halal, logistics and distribution, and customs and non-tariff barriers.

One-Stop Support Hub Addresses Exporter Challenges

The government will prioritize resolving obstacles encountered by export companies. To deliver comprehensive sector-based support, a K-Food One-Stop Export Support Hub will be established to function as a unified consultation center for exporters, with hotlines connecting relevant ministries and agencies. Additionally, the government will analyze and categorize non-tariff barriers by region and classification, actively addressing these challenges through diplomatic networks.

To flexibly respond to external uncertainties including exchange rates, the government will double the agricultural export voucher support from 36 billion won this year to 72 billion won next year, and will expand export insurance support, including reducing the self-payment ratio for exchange rate fluctuation insurance, along with certification, consulting, and other K-Food export-specialized services.

Converting Tourism into Food Exports

The government will facilitate inbound tourists becoming overseas K-Food consumers by integrating K-Initiatives including K-tourism, content, culture, and consumer products.

K-Gastronomy Belt Development

To achieve this, the government will strengthen the K-Gastronomy Belt by combining regional tourism resources and organizing experiential events, aiming to transform inbound tourists into K-Food consumers. Beginning with the Chicken Belt next year, the government plans to establish the second and third Korean cuisine belts, considering demand from international tourists.

Entertainment and Marketing Integration

In collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and other agencies, the government will actively promote production of entertainment programs and content featuring K-Food, alongside marketing through global video streaming platforms (OTT). The government also intends to designate Hallyu stars and influencers as K-Food ambassadors to further disseminate the positive image of K-Food.

Middle East and Halal Market Penetration

The government will diversify export markets to promising regions including the Middle East and Africa, utilizing the United Arab Emirates as a distribution hub, while also targeting specialized markets requiring mandatory certifications such as halal, vegan, and kosher.

To expand into promising markets like the Middle East, the “Halal Food Export Council” will be enlarged and restructured to include domestic certification organizations and export companies, with a new “Overseas Export Support Center” established this month within the National Food Cluster (Iksan) to facilitate entry into promising markets including the Middle East. Furthermore, the Overseas Food Certification Support Center of the Korea Food Research Institute will enhance ingredient analysis (such as alcohol detection) and technical assistance.

Minister Declares Launch of K-Food Era

Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Song Miryung stated, “The genuine launch of K-Food commences now. The government will dedicate maximum effort to ensure strategies announced jointly with relevant ministries are implemented in practice and provide robust support for our export companies.” She added, “We will exert every effort to ensure these outcomes lead to realization of our global vision and the 2030 export objective.”

Source:

Asia Economy. (2025). Korean cuisine education for foreign chefs and focused Middle East expansion: Ministry of Agriculture to drive “accelerated growth” of K-Food. https://cm.asiae.co.kr/en/article/2025122315052435054