Production of 750 Cans of Beer from a Single Tangerine
"Emphasis on Coexistence with Jeju Farmers,
But Criticism Over Extremely Low Tangerine Content"
Following Baek Ham and Meal Kit Controversies,
Beer Content Issue Shakes Baek Jong-won’s Stock Price
Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea, has been embroiled in controversy over the 'Baek Ham Set' and 'Brazilian Chicken Meal Kit,' and now faces criticism regarding the 'beer content.' The controversy arose as Yeondon Bolkatsu, a franchise under The Born Korea, released a beer called 'Gamgyul Oreum,' which has been pointed out to contain significantly lower tangerine content compared to other fruit beers.
According to the ingredient label on Gamgyul Oreum, one can (500ml) contains 0.032% tangerine juice, approximately 0.16ml. This is markedly lower compared to other beers such as Austria's J?ger Radler Peach (0.4822% peach concentrate), Germany's Sch?fferhofer Grapefruit (5.5% grapefruit juice), Brolbrew Lemon (2.1% lemon juice concentrate), and Singapore's Tiger Radler Lemon (0.12% lemon extract concentrate).
The Born Korea has promoted 'Gamgyul Oreum' as a differentiated beer utilizing local specialties. In particular, it introduced the product as "made with pure Jeju tangerines, including imperfect tangerines, to embody the spirit of coexistence with Jeju tangerine farms and highlight Jeju's unique characteristics," emphasizing cooperation with local farmers and gaining consumer favor. However, criticism is mounting over the discrepancy between marketing claims and the reality of the extremely low tangerine content.
The difference becomes even clearer when calculating the amount of tangerines used in brewing the beer. Considering that one juice tangerine with a diameter of 67.7mm yields about 120.135ml of juice, approximately 750 cans of 'Gamgyul Oreum' beer can be produced from a single tangerine. Based on the assumption that 100,000 cans of 'Gamgyul Oreum' were sold, the actual amount of tangerines used would be only 15kg. Notably, the insufficient sweetness due to the low tangerine content in Gamgyul Oreum has been replaced by alternative sweeteners such as erythritol and glucose, which has further fueled the controversy.
Recently, CEO Baek was also embroiled in controversy over the canned ham 'Baek Ham content.' Ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, a ham set priced at 51,900 KRW was sold at a 45% discount for 28,500 KRW, but it was priced higher than CJ CheilJedang's 'Spam,' the industry leader, drawing criticism from consumers. Additionally, some shopping platforms sold it at even lower prices, leading to sharp opinions suggesting "the discount rate was exaggerated by inflating the original price." However, CEO Baek explained, "As a latecomer, production costs are higher, resulting in a significant cost difference. Also, the difference in meat content per 200g is about 14g, which translates to less than 100 KRW in cost, so would we reduce meat content just to save 100 KRW?"
The 'Baek Cook Chicken Steak' sold on The Born Mall also became a subject of controversy. In July last year, CEO Baek introduced the product on his YouTube channel, emphasizing "helping expand sales channels for agricultural, fishery, and livestock products." However, the main ingredient, chicken, was not domestically sourced. According to the detailed product information on The Born Mall, it states 'Brined chicken meat (Brazilian) 97.81%.' Netizens criticized this, saying, "It's contradictory to claim support for domestic farms while actually using imported products."
Amid the ongoing controversies, The Born Korea's stock price has also shown sluggish performance, hovering in the low 30,000 KRW range. This is less than half of the 64,500 KRW recorded on the first day of listing on the KOSPI market after its IPO at the end of last year. Industry insiders attribute The Born Korea's controversies and stock price slump more to 'owner risk' than to business performance. Since CEO Baek has established himself as a leading figure in the domestic food service industry, his actions are seen as having a significant impact on the company's image and stock price.
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