Rice Beverage and Kimchi Banh Mi Gain Popularity in Vietnam

Vietnam Ho Chi Minh Food and Beverage Expo
aT Korea Pavilion Emphasizes 'Delicious Well-being'
$24.8 Million Consultation Achievement

K-Food is actively targeting the Vietnamese market, which has a population of over 100 million, by promoting "delicious well-being" that is both tasty and healthy. As K-Food continues to gain popularity in Vietnam, exports of Korean agricultural and food products are also showing strong growth.

The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) announced on the 14th that it participated in the "2024 Vietnam Food and Beverage Expo" held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from the 8th to the 10th, achieving consultation results worth $24.8 million in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

The Vietnam Food and Beverage Expo is the largest exhibition in the food and beverage sector held in Ho Chi Minh City, providing a comprehensive overview of the latest trends in the Vietnamese food market. The expo featured national pavilions from countries including Korea, Taiwan, and Poland, along with over 1,000 exporting companies engaging in active export consultations.

Vietnam is a country with over 100 million potential consumers of K-Food. As of the end of July this year, K-Food exports to Vietnam reached $362 million, a 5% increase compared to the same period last year. In particular, beverages and snacks led the growth with exports of $38 million (up 14.4% year-on-year) and $13 million (up 20.0%), respectively. K-Food exports to ASEAN countries, including Vietnam, totaled $1.0995 billion, marking a 5.5% increase compared to the previous year.

Overview of the Integrated Korea Pavilion at the "2024 Vietnam Food and Beverage Expo" held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from the 8th to the 10th.

Accordingly, aT organized an "Integrated Korea Pavilion" with 28 outstanding domestic K-Food exporters to expand K-Food exports to Vietnam. The pavilion showcased a variety of K-Food products tailored to Vietnamese tastes, ranging from fresh agricultural products such as grapes and paprika to rice beverages, rice-processed foods like tteokbokki, as well as red ginseng, health functional foods, alcoholic beverages, and drinks.

An aT official explained, "At the Integrated Korea Pavilion, there were also demonstration and tasting events featuring 'K-Street' foods that young people are enthusiastic about, such as gimbap and rabokki. Notably, the 'Kimchi Banh Mi,' which adds Korea’s healthy fermented food kimchi to the Vietnamese sandwich 'banh mi,' gained explosive popularity and successfully captured local tastes."

Nguyen Hu Kiem, a local importer who visited the Korea Pavilion, said, "Well-being trends are emerging in Vietnam as well, and consumers are increasingly interested in Korean food and beverages known for being 'safe and healthy.' It was beneficial to experience a wide range of delicious and healthy K-Food at this expo, and I plan to visit the Korea Pavilion every year."

To drive tangible export results for the participating exporters at the Integrated Korea Pavilion, aT invited over 80 major Vietnamese buyers during the expo period and arranged one-on-one matching consultations. As a result, consultation achievements totaling $24.8 million were realized.

Kwon Oh-yeop, Director of Export Food at aT, stated, "Vietnam is a land of opportunity where local consumers have a very favorable view of Korean culture. We will continue to mobilize various marketing projects to accelerate the growth of K-Food exports and support our exporters in pioneering the Vietnamese market."

Meanwhile, K-Food exports reached $5.67 billion through July this year, marking a 9.2% increase compared to last year. Ramen exports hit approximately $700 million by the end of July, setting a record high. Exports of snacks and beverages also grew by more than 10% compared to the same period last year. In particular, rice-processed foods such as instant rice and frozen gimbap showed a high growth rate of 45.7%, driven by sustained interest in vegan, health foods, and the Korean Wave. Exports of ginseng products and kimchi are also steadily increasing.