Customs Service to Boost Kimchi Exports—Crackdown Intensifies on Mislabeling of Imported Kimchi as Domestic

(Sejong=Yonhap Infomax) Jun Hyung Park – The Korea Customs Service (KCS) has held discussions with domestic kimchi producers to devise strategies for expanding exports of kimchi, a core K-food product, and to strengthen enforcement against the mislabeling of imported kimchi as domestically produced.

On the 20th, Lee Jong-wook, Deputy Commissioner of the Korea Customs Service, visited Palgong Kimchi, a kimchi manufacturer based in Daegu, to inspect its production process and hold a roundtable with company officials.

South Korea’s kimchi exports rose 5.1% from $155.6 million in 2023 to $163.57 million last year, with a further 2% increase recorded through October this year compared to the same period a year earlier.

“We will provide consulting on the active use of the certified exporter system for rules of origin, enabling domestic kimchi exporters to leverage free trade agreements (FTAs) and expand their overseas shipments,” Lee said. “By listening to feedback from the export field, we aim to further support the export promotion of K-foods centered on domestic kimchi.”

He added, “If low-priced, low-quality imported kimchi is falsely labeled and sold or exported as domestic, it could harm local kimchi producers. Therefore, we will intensify crackdowns on violations of country-of-origin labeling and the misrepresentation of imported kimchi as domestic at both distribution and export stages.”

jhpark6@yna.co.kr

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