COUNTRY PROFILE
Discover more about the South Korea market including overviews about the retail, foodservice, and food-processing sectors. Events, resources, and more are linked throughout the profile.
20%
of Korea’s imported agricultural products were supplied by the U.S in 2023
5th
largest market for U.S. processed food exports
3rd
most densely populated country in the world
USDA’s Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) in Seoul hereinafter referred to as “FAS Post Seoul” reports that as the fifth largest country export market for the U.S., Korea provides a promising market for U.S. agricultural products. In 2023, Korea imported US$47 billion of agricultural and related products from the world and the U.S. was the biggest supplier taking 20% of the market. In 2024 U.S. exports of processed foods have increased 11% to over US$2.1 billion, putting them in fifth place as a top export market.
Korea’s overall agricultural imports are forecast to have limited growth this year partly due to decreased demand from local retail and foodservice industries, weakened Korean currency against the U.S. dollar, and global inflation of food prices over the last couple of years. However, U.S. food and agricultural products will continue to be competitive in this market in the long run considering extended consumer interests in quality, safety, and sustainability. 2024 Top U.S. exports of processed foods in 2024 included:
2024 Top U.S. exports of processed foods in 2024 included:
$28.8 billion
Retail sales in the packaged food market in Korea were estimated at US$28.8 billion in 2024
18th
Korea is the 18th largest packaged food market in the world
30%
I30% of all online sales was food-related in Korea in 2023
According to Euromonitor, retail sales in the packaged food market in Korea had been estimated to reach US$28.8 billion in 2024. Korea is now the fifth largest packaged food market in the Asia Pacific region and is the 18th largest market in the world. By the year 2029, the retail sales in the packaged food market in Korea is expected to increase 16.1% to nearly US$34.8 billion, an increase of US$4.8 billion more than 2025.
Grocery supermarkets were the leading food retail channel, followed by on-line retailers, hypermarket discount stores, convenience stores, and department stores. Recent years, e-commerce only companies have taken leadership of the Korean food retail market from large offline based distributors. Out of the total online sales of Korea in 2023, food related online sales including food, agricultural products, and food delivery services became the largest category sold online occupying about 30%.
FAS Post Seoul reports that for the first half of 2024, Korean imports of beef (fresh), pork (fresh/frozen), milk and cream, nuts, and citrus fruits from the U.S. increased comparing to the same period last year.
$131.7 billion
total sales of the HRI foodservice sector in 2022
50%
Over 50% of Koreans live in the Seoul metropolitan area
20%
In 2024, over 20% of Koreans were aged 65 or older
FAS Post Seoul reports that in 2022, Korea’s sales in the hotel, restaurant, institutional (HRI) foodservice sector reached US$137.1 billion, a 17.5% increase from 2021, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. Despite challenges such as inflation and changing market conditions, Korea’s HRI foodservice sector is expected to maintain slow but steady growth.
The overall sales growth in the HRI foodservice industry is largely due to people returning to their pre-pandemic lifestyles, dining out, and engaging in social gathering, but also due to menu price increases and high inflation affecting all industries.
FAS Post Seoul reports that the highest-value imports from the U.S. to Korea in 2023 include beef, pork, food preparations, spirits, nuts, and cheese and curd.
23.6%
of all Korean imports of food and agricultural products in 2023 came from the U.S.
58.7%
of Korean beef imports in 2023 came from the U.S.
2.5 Million
Koreans are vegetarian
FAS Post Seoul Korea reports that Korea’s food processing industry relies heavily on imports to fulfill its food and agricultural needs in order to manufacture a wide variety of food and beverage products. In 2022, the food processing industry generated approximately US$63.3 billion in sales.
Despite challenges from competitors, the U.S. is expected to remain the leading supplier of food and agricultural products to Korea for years to come, not only for commodities and intermediate products, but also for consumer-oriented products. The U.S. accounted for 23.6% of total Korean imports of food and agricultural products in 2023.
FAS Post Seoul reports that some of the products that are present in the market and still have good sales potential are beef, pork, dairy, soybeans, and snacks. There is opportunity for imports of bulk commodities for processing such as wheat, intermediate ingredients such as fruit juice concentrates, and many other products, such as flavors and coloring agents.
