[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] CJ CheilJedang announced on the 14th that it will lead changes in food culture by promoting frozen convenience foods (excluding dumplings) such as frozen rice and frozen snacks. Based on the brand power of ‘Bibigo’ and ‘Gourmet’ and differentiated R&D, the company aims to change the negative perception of frozen foods, achieve sales growth, and take the lead in the ‘home dining of eating out (外食의 내식화).’
For decades, the frozen food market was formed around price rather than quality, and companies did not put much effort into investment or research and development. As a result, the perception among consumers that ‘frozen food is cheap and tasteless’ prevailed, limiting consumption expansion and causing the market to remain stagnant without significant development.
Judging that the domestic market also has potential since the global frozen food market reaches tens of trillions of won, CJ CheilJedang focused on securing differentiated R&D and innovative manufacturing technologies through aggressive investment. Subsequently, it quickly introduced products with overwhelming taste quality under the ‘Bibigo’ and ‘Gourmet’ brands to meet rapidly changing consumer trends and needs.
As a result, every product launched received favorable reviews, expanding the perception that ‘frozen foods can also have excellent taste and quality.’ In particular, it created a premium trend in the frozen food market, leading competitors to join this trend and resulting in overall market growth. In fact, last year’s market size grew by 17% compared to 2017.
This year, CJ CheilJedang’s frozen convenience food sales continue to expand. Sales in the first half of this year reached approximately 190 billion won, growing more than 10% compared to the same period last year. The growth was driven by Gourmet frying snacks such as ‘Gourmet Hot Dog,’ ‘Gourmet Donkatsu,’ and ‘Gourmet Chicken,’ while ‘Bibigo Jumeokbap’ launched in April and ‘Gourmet Frozen Bakery’ released at the end of last year also attracted attention and contributed to sales expansion.
CJ CheilJedang’s strategy for the second half of the year is to continuously introduce products with extraordinary taste quality to captivate consumers whose palates have become more sophisticated.
First, it will strengthen the portfolio of frying snacks. To target the chicken category, which accounts for the largest sales share in the frying market, it recently launched ‘Gourmet Crispy Yangnyeom Chicken.’ This is the first time in the industry that a seasoned chicken product has been introduced as a processed food. After being fried once, it is baked in a high-temperature oven, so even when coated in sauce, it remains crispy without becoming soggy. It also includes a separate chicken specialty sauce that can be poured or dipped.
Additionally, through technology exchange with Schwan’s, the taste quality of ‘Gourmet’ pizza will be upgraded and officially launched in the second half of this year. Furthermore, the company plans to lead the frozen convenience food trend with products that replicate the most popular menus among consumers in dining out, such as Gourmet frying snacks, jumeokbap, and bakery items.
A CJ CheilJedang official said, “The growth of ‘Bibigo’ and ‘Gourmet’ frozen convenience foods is significant in that consumers can now enjoy various Korean and Western dishes with restaurant-level taste quality,” adding, “We will continue to strive to introduce diverse products that satisfy segmented consumer tastes.”
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