"Chicken Price 30,000 Won? Too Expensive... I'd Rather Heat Frozen Chicken at Home"

Rising Franchise Chicken Prices and Delivery Fees Spark Consumer Complaints
'No Chicken Movement' Emerges in the Era of 30,000 Won Chicken Prices
Sales of Relatively Cheaper Frozen Chicken Products Increase

As chicken prices rise, consumer complaints are flooding in. Photo by Pixabay

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Se-eun] Consumers are expressing a flood of complaints over soaring chicken prices alongside rising inflation. As delivery fees and chicken prices rise together, ushering in an era of '30,000 won chicken,' some consumers are increasing their purchases of relatively cheaper frozen chicken.

According to the distribution industry, during the past week (July 14?20), frozen chicken sales on Gmarket increased by 62% compared to the previous week and by 10% compared to the same period last year. During the same period, sales of chicken nuggets and tender products rose by 23% and 12% week-over-week, and by 20% and 23% year-over-year, respectively.

Harim, which sells frozen chicken products such as 'Air Fryer Boneless Chicken' and 'Harim Chicken Nuggets,' reported sales of 3.219 billion won last month, a 17.7% increase compared to the same period last year.

The industry cites the main reason for the surge in frozen chicken sales as the franchise price hikes that began at the end of last year. The good taste and quality relative to the affordable price are also considered to have had a positive impact.

Consumer complaints about increased delivery fees are also rising.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Recently, some Kyochon Chicken franchise stores raised their delivery fees from 3,000 won to 4,000 won, an increase of about 33%. As a result, the proportion of delivery fees in the total chicken price has risen to 23.5%.

Earlier, Kyochon Chicken faced criticism as the main culprit behind effectively raising chicken prices by introducing the 'separate delivery fee' system for the first time in the industry in 2018. Kyochon Chicken's separate delivery fee started at 2,000 won and rose to 3,000 won in July 2021. It then increased to 4,000 won within a year.

'No Chicken' campaign poster appearing on the online community FM Korea. Photo by FM Korea capture

Consumers' voices of dissatisfaction have grown accordingly. However, Kyochon Chicken drew a clear line by stating, "Delivery fees are entirely at the discretion of franchise owners," and "The increase in delivery fees has nothing to do with the headquarters."

Meanwhile, a 'No Chicken' movement boycotting chicken has emerged. On the 18th, a poster titled 'Boycott Franchise Chicken' was posted on an online community. It parodied the 2019 Japanese product boycott movement 'No Japan' and expressed the intention not to buy franchise chicken. The poster included phrases such as "We do not order. We do not eat," and "In the era of 30,000 won chicken, consumers have the right to choose."

This post recorded 200,000 views and over 300 comments, becoming a hot topic day after day. Netizens responded with comments like, "The quantity and quality remain the same, but only the price goes up," and "Companies don't care because everyone keeps buying even after the price increase." Some voices argue that considering the global inflation trend, the rise in chicken prices is a natural progression.

Meanwhile, experts point out that consumers react more sensitively to chicken than to other foods due to its special status in Korean society. They emphasize that pricing should be handled carefully when selling products familiar to the public sentiment.