Launch of K-Liqueur Export Support Council
Alcohol Export Slump... Last Year's Trade Deficit of 1.324 Trillion Won
84% of Traditional Liquor and Small Manufacturers Hope to Export
Advisory Group Includes Food Service Expert Baek Jong-won and Domestic Whiskey Pioneer Kim Chang-su
The government is launching a branding initiative for Korean alcoholic beverages. Just as 'sake' is associated with Japan, 'vodka' with Russia, and 'tequila' with Mexico, the plan is to develop a brand representing 'Korean alcohol' to target overseas markets.
On the 11th, the National Tax Service (NTS) announced the launch of the public-private joint 'K-Liqueur Export Support Council.'
An NTS official explained, "In a situation where the trade balance of alcoholic beverages is severe and traditional liquor and small-to-medium-sized alcohol manufacturers are struggling to enter overseas markets due to a lack of infrastructure, we are officially activating this council. We plan to focus on branding Korean alcohol, building a cooperative alcohol ecosystem, strengthening education and technical support for alcohol manufacturing, and providing outreach services."
The council is co-headed by Park Seong-gi, Chairman of the Makgeolli Export Council, and the Director of the Corporate Taxation Bureau of the NTS. Participants include Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea and an expert in food service management; Kim Chang-su, a pioneer of domestic whiskey and CEO of Kim Chang-su Whiskey Distillery; and Lee Hwa-seon, Director of the Korean Alcohol Culture Institute.
The government established this public-private council because the trade deficit in alcoholic beverages is serious. Due to the spread of home drinking and solo drinking cultures during COVID-19 and the whiskey craze among the MZ generation, alcohol imports surged from 1.0295 trillion KRW in 2019 to 1.7219 trillion KRW in 2022. Meanwhile, domestic alcohol exports decreased from 404.7 billion KRW to 397.9 billion KRW during the same period due to a lack of overseas recognition and limitations in human and physical infrastructure.
According to the NTS, a survey of 1,006 domestic traditional liquor and small-to-medium-sized alcohol manufacturers showed that 83.4% of respondents wished to export alcoholic beverages but felt limited in finding export opportunities due to a lack of infrastructure and networks. The biggest challenges cited were ▲lack of overseas market information ▲lack of export-related know-how ▲absence of national support to back overseas credibility.
Therefore, through the K-Liqueur Council, the government plans to boost the momentum for exporting Korean alcohol. Recently, thanks to the popularity of K-dramas, Korean Makgeolli has gained explosive popularity in Japan and China, even becoming a bestseller on Amazon Japan. Inspired by this, the NTS will collaborate with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Korea Alcohol Industry Association, and others to brand Korean alcohol through a public contest and proceed with trademark registration.
Going forward, exported alcoholic products will be able to use 'K-brand labels' such as K-Makgeolli, K-Soju, and K-Whiskey, supporting Korean alcohol to compete in the global market by riding the wave of the K-content boom.
The government will also foster an alcohol ecosystem where large corporations and small-to-medium enterprises coexist. The core idea is to create a cooperative channel where large companies pass on their long-standing experience, know-how, and infrastructure to traditional liquor and small-to-medium alcohol manufacturers. To this end, an annual 'Export Promotion Seminar' will be institutionalized to share export know-how from large alcohol companies and leading exporters, minimizing trial and error for small businesses and supporting overseas market development and expansion.
Useful export information held by government agencies and member companies of alcohol-related associations will also be gathered and provided in one place. The Alcohol License Support Center website will be expanded and revamped into the 'K-Liqueur Portal,' encompassing comprehensive domestic and international alcohol-related information to improve accessibility. The NTS, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (aT Center), Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), alcohol-related associations, and leading exporters will collaborate to publish a 'Alcohol Export Guidebook.'
Education and technical support for alcohol manufacturers will be significantly strengthened. The 'Alcohol Manufacturing Academy' course, which educates on brewing technology, startup, and export know-how, will be enhanced to expand educational services for startup preparers and new companies. Collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs will be reinforced to promote export expansion education, respond to overseas issues, and resolve industry difficulties.
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