[National Brand] "Health in a Small Bottle"... 'Yakult' Consumed 1,000 Bottles Per Person

1971 Korea's First Probiotic Fermented Milk
Own Technology, Production, and Storage System Established
Continuous Innovation Popular Among All Ages
500 Billion Bottles Sold Over 52 Years

"This small bottle contains the preciousness of health."

Probiotics specialist company hy (formerly Korea Yakult) conveyed this message to consumers when it introduced 'Yakult,' the first domestically produced lactic acid bacteria fermented milk product in Korea in 1971. At a time when health foods were unfamiliar, hy contributed to improving consumer health by establishing the related foundation with its own technology and is recognized as a product that expanded the category of beverages to health.

Yakult [Photo by hy]

Yakult uses Yakult bacteria (Lactobacillus casei), which are not killed by stomach acid or bile. To strengthen acid resistance, a cultivation process is carried out to select only those that survive gradually and strongly in gastric juice or bile. This period lasts a total of 13 days. Afterward, through a 7-day fermentation process, Yakult products with excellent taste and flavor are completed.

At that time, hy equipped factories with low-temperature storage facilities and operated refrigerated vehicles to deliver Yakult, produced according to legal standards, fresh to consumers. Sales centers (now sales points) operated refrigerators 24 hours a day. In 2014, hy introduced the world's first ride-on refrigerated cart 'Coco (Cold&Cool)' and delivered even a single bottle of Yakult fresh to customers' doorsteps through a full cold chain system.

To enhance consumer satisfaction, continuous product changes were also attempted. In April 2016, the innovative 'Frozen Yakult,' with a bottle design flipped upside down from the existing Yakult bottle, was launched. This product offers nostalgia to adults and fun to children, gaining popularity as a nutritious summer snack. The 'Yakult Premium Light,' launched in April 2017, contains abundant probiotics with a 100ml volume about 53% larger than the existing Yakult (65ml). In July 2021, it received functional probiotics certification from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

Yakult currently continues to be the best-selling single brand in the domestic food and beverage market. Since its launch, the cumulative sales volume has reached 50 billion bottles over 52 years. This means nearly 1,000 bottles per capita in Korea. Loved consistently by people of all ages and genders, it still leads the fermented milk market with a market share exceeding 40%.