Gwangju Kimchi Festival Draws 68,000 Visitors, a Huge Success

Cheonin's Table and Kimchi Sales Market Achieve 800 Million KRW in Sales

Visitors attending the 31st Gwangju Kimchi Festival held from the 18th to the 20th at Gwangju City Hall Plaza are lining up at the Kimchi Market to buy kimchi.
[Photo by Gwangju City]

Gwangju City announced on the 23rd that approximately 68,000 visitors attended the 31st Gwangju Kimchi Festival held over three days from the 18th to the 20th at the City Hall Plaza area, generating sales of 820 million KRW.

Under the theme of "Universe's Brightest Kimchi Party," this year’s Gwangju Kimchi Festival moved beyond the traditional kimchi-making experiences, competitions, and sales-focused events by offering opportunities to directly taste food such as the "Gwangju Kimchi Star Chef Food Show" and "Thousand People's Table," which drew enthusiastic responses from attendees.

In particular, the "Gwangju Kimchi Star Chef Food Show," featuring chefs Choi Hyun-seok, Yeo Kyung-rae, Fabrizio Ferrari?who appeared on Netflix’s The Chef Show?and temple food master Monk Jeonggwan, was highly popular. These four chefs prepared dishes using Gwangju kimchi, which has won the Presidential Award at the annual "Korea Kimchi Competition" hosted by Gwangju City, including ▲gat kimchi soy sauce marinated crab risotto ▲large shrimp kimchi whole shrimp meat stew ▲cockscomb white kimchi jelly soup ▲gat water kimchi octopus cold pasta, directly in front of the audience. One hundred attendees tasted the dishes on-site, greatly elevating the event’s atmosphere. The "Gwangju Kimchi Star Chef Food Show" was also broadcast live on YouTube via the internet channel Hello Gwangju.

The Kimchi Market was bustling. Despite concerns over rising cabbage prices due to recent increases in production costs, napa cabbage kimchi was sold starting at 8,000 KRW per kilogram, attracting visitors eager to purchase affordable, high-quality kimchi. Some vendors sold out early, with total sales reaching 410 million KRW over the three days of the festival.

The "Thousand People's Table" showcased over 30 dishes such as jarred whole pork belly barbecue and kimchi cheese pork belly rolls, recording sales of 191 million KRW and enjoying great popularity.

Additionally, the festival featured the musical "My First Kimchi Party," the kimchi dance "I Am Kimchi," and a "Kimchi Fashion Show" presenting the evolution of kimchi-making attire through the ages, demonstrating that kimchi is not just food but a core element of the globally popular K-content culture.

This year’s Kimchi Festival also saw a significant increase in foreign visitors. It was reported that foreigners from more than 15 countries, including France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan, Hungary, Vietnam, and Kenya, attended. The "Global Kimchi Lounge" for foreigners was filled with participants on the stamp tour. The "Kimjang Arcade" for children also became a popular spot for families.

Joo Jae-hee, Director of the Economic Startup Bureau of Gwangju City, said, "This year’s Gwangju Kimchi Festival proved that Gwangju kimchi has become a unique genre and a representative brand of Gwangju. We will do our best to develop new content that leads global kimchi culture trends at next year’s Kimchi Festival."