Seven Eleven Strengthens HMR Brand 'Soban'... Relaunches Two Types of Stew

Sobahn, a home meal replacement (HMR) brand sold at 7-Eleven.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chunhan] Seven Eleven announced on the 14th that it will renew its home meal replacement (HMR) brand ‘Sobahn’ and strengthen its categories in response to the increased demand for home-cooked meals due to COVID-19.

Sobahn is a comprehensive HMR brand launched by Seven Eleven in 2018, offering menus optimized for one- to two-person households. Currently, it operates a total of over 20 products including stews, rice bowls, side dishes, and meal kits.

As the first renewal product, Seven Eleven introduced two types of soup dishes most loved by Koreans: ‘Korean Pork Kimchi Stew’ and ‘Green Onion Yukgaejang.’ These products were developed over a total of four months in collaboration with the excellent small and medium-sized food company Mijeong. Using carefully selected domestic ingredients, the taste and quality were upgraded, and the amount of solid ingredients was increased to more than twice that of existing products to add heartiness. In particular, the heat treatment time was reduced by 20% to preserve the original taste and texture of the ingredients, creating a flavor as if cooked at home.

Sobahn Korean Pork Kimchi Stew is made by simmering kimchi made from domestic napa cabbage and high-quality Korean pork generously, while Sobahn Green Onion Yukgaejang is richly boiled with broth made from beef bone and brisket, with large pieces of green onion, taro stems, and beef. These HMR products come in convenient pouch form and can be heated in a microwave or boiled in a pot. Starting with these two products, Seven Eleven plans to sequentially renew and launch the over 20 Sobahn products currently in operation.

A Seven Eleven official said, “With the increase in single-person households and the home meal trend due to COVID-19 overlapping, the convenience store HMR market is growing every year. Following the Korean soup-and-rice culture where soup always accompanies rice, we selected stew as the first renewal product. We plan to enhance taste and quality through sequential renewal work and continuously expand the operating categories.”

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