Pulmuone to Raise Prices of Noodles and Rice Cakes by About 8%

Pulmuone 'Pyeongyang Naengmyeon'.

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] Pulmuone has raised the supply prices of its noodle and rice cake products. Pulmuone stated that the price increase was inevitable due to the soaring costs of major raw materials such as wheat, which have been rising for a year, increasing the cost burden.

According to the industry on the 9th, Pulmuone sent official letters to large supermarkets and convenience stores from the end of last month to early this month, announcing price increases for refrigerated noodles and rice cake products. A Pulmuone representative explained, “We reluctantly raised prices due to the sharp rise in international grain prices.”

Pulmuone has not disclosed the exact rate of increase. However, according to large supermarkets and convenience store operators, up to 40 types of Pulmuone’s noodle and rice cake products are included in the price increase items. The average increase rate is around 8%.

Among these, the price increase rate for udon noodles was notably high. The products ‘Saengappa Udon Single Serving’ and ‘Saengappa Stir-fried Udon Single Serving’ were changed to ‘Katsuo Saeng Udon Single Serving’ and ‘Teriyaki Stir-fried Udon Single Serving,’ respectively, with prices rising by 31%. ‘Saeng Katsuo Udon Double Serving’ and ‘Bibim Saeng Jjolmyeon’ increased by 10%, while ‘Fried Udon Double Serving’ rose by 8.4%.

The price increases for these products are due to the recent surge in the price of wheat, their main ingredient. According to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the price of wheat per ton traded at $252 this month, soaring about 40% compared to the same period last year ($183). Additionally, prices of other key ingredients such as rice and green onions are also on the rise, so further price increases are expected.

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