Vacuum-Packed and Gochujang-Cooked Dried Yellow Croaker... 12.7% Increase in Sales This Lunar New Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Minyoung Cha] Sales of holiday dried yellow corvina gift sets, which had been stagnant for years, are reviving as packaging and processing methods change.

Hyundai Department Store announced on the 19th that sales of dried yellow corvina increased by 12.7% from December 16 last year to January 18 this year, the sales period for the ‘2020 Lunar New Year gift sets,’ compared to the same period last year. This is four times the overall average increase for Lunar New Year gift sets (3.2%) and higher than that of Korean beef (10.5%) and fresh produce (9.1%).

Sales of dried yellow corvina had been stagnant for years. In fact, sales of dried yellow corvina gift sets at Hyundai Department Store during Lunar New Year in 2017 decreased by 4% compared to the same period the previous year, and sales in 2018 and 2019 were similar to last year’s.

As preference for dried yellow corvina increased compared to previous years, the packaging was improved for easier storage and processing methods were changed. First, the quantity of ‘vacuum-packed dried yellow corvina’ was prepared at 4,000 units, three times more than last year’s Lunar New Year, with over 75% of them, 3,100 units, already sold. The ‘Compact Yeonggwang Chamgulbi Set’ vacuum-packed each 20cm-sized Chamgulbi individually. The ‘Yeonggwang Baro Gulbi Set’ removed the internal organs of the dried yellow corvina and vacuum-packed each fish individually.

Dried yellow corvina gift sets with processing methods changed to make cooking easier for customers are also popular. To reduce the smell during cooking, products that made dried yellow corvina strips by filleting only the flesh or mixed finely chopped dried yellow corvina strips with red chili paste to enhance flavor were expanded. There are various products such as the ‘Red Chili Paste Dried Yellow Corvina Set,’ the ‘Plum Red Chili Paste Dried Yellow Corvina Set,’ and the ‘Gulbi Myungga Set.’

Additionally, the ‘Master Artisan Nuruk Gulbi Set,’ made by soaking croaker in ‘nuruk jang’?a natural fermented sauce made with rice, sun-dried salt, and purified water?for about 10 hours and then drying it for about 70 hours, and the ‘Special Salted Gulbi Set,’ seasoned with bamboo tube-roasted bamboo salt, sun-dried salt boiled in a cauldron, and sun-dried salt, are also performing well.

Yoon Sang-kyung, head of the fresh food team at Hyundai Department Store, said, “It seems that various attempts to respond to changes in holiday gift set trends have become an opportunity for customers to rediscover dried yellow corvina,” adding, “We plan to continue experimenting with various merchandise planning (MD) that can lead customer trends in the future.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.