The Only Burger Challenge in Korea to Crown the Nation’s Best Burger
10 Million Won Prize and Entry to the World Food Championship for the Winning Team
Samsung Welstory announced on January 19 that it will host the '2026 Korea Burger Championship' (2026 KBC), the only global burger challenge in Korea, this coming April in collaboration with Melting Soul, a premium handmade burger brand.
The 2026 KBC is a competition to determine the best handmade burger in Korea. The winning team will earn the right to represent Korea in the burger category at the World Food Championship (WFC), the largest culinary competition in the United States.
Recently, global market research firm Business Research Insight projected that the global hamburger market will grow at an average annual rate of 7.9% through 2035. As global interest in hamburgers rises, burger championships around the world that showcase creative burgers are gaining popularity.
For example, the Japan Burger Championship, which holds the WFC Asia license, attracts over 70,000 visitors during the competition period and is credited with fostering the emergence of new burger brands.
Amid these global burger trends, Korea's hamburger market is also expanding rapidly due to rising dining-out prices and the spread of solo dining culture. With the continued global popularity of K-Food, the industry has been making efforts to discover a representative K-Burger to compete on the international stage.
In response, Samsung Welstory plans to host the 2026 KBC with Melting Soul, which has experience participating in the WFC, to support competitive K-Burgers in their global endeavors and create new business opportunities in the burger ingredient market.
The final winning team will receive a prize of 10 million won, the opportunity to compete in the WFC in the United States in October, and a chance to operate a showcase booth to promote their burger brand at the Japan Burger Championship in June. Overseas expenses worth 20 million won required for these activities will also be provided.
A Samsung Welstory representative stated, "This competition aims to introduce K-Burgers as a new category of K-Food to the global market. We also plan to offer future brand consulting to help competitive burgers presented by individual participants become commercial products."
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