"K-Korean Jujube Captivates Global Taste Buds" Korea Forest Service Develops and Supports Export of Snacks, Tea, and Yanggaeng

Boeun Samgadaechu Farm Develops Jujube Processed Foods with Support from Korea Forest Service
Successful in Diversifying Products and Expanding Exports by Exploring Overseas Markets in Japan, Taiwan, China, Australia, and More

Boeun Samgadaechu Farm CEO Kim Hong-bok (right) and his wife are smiling broadly as they look at the densely hanging jujubes on the tree branches. Photo by Korea Forest Service

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] “This year, we expect a significant increase in jujube production and export volume.” Kim Hong-bok (59), CEO of Boeun Samga Jujube Farm, smiled as he looked at the jujubes hanging in clusters on the branches.

After returning to his hometown in Boeun, Chungbuk in 1999, Kim started jujube cultivation in 2002. The regional characteristics also played a role in his decision to manage a jujube farm in Boeun. Boeun is a basin located southwest of Sogrisan Mountain, where the large temperature difference between day and night and abundant sunlight make the geographical and climatic conditions suitable for jujube cultivation.

In the early days of farm operation, Kim planted 1,800 jujube trees. However, now the farm spans 10,000 pyeong (2.5 hectares) densely planted with jujube trees, making it difficult to count the exact number. The annual production of jujubes from this farm alone reaches 20 tons.

Notably, about one-tenth (2 to 2.5 tons) of the jujubes produced at Kim’s farm are exported overseas. The export breakthrough occurred in 2015 in Japan. That year, commemorating the 50th anniversary of Korea-Japan diplomatic relations, Kim participated in the Korea Food Expo, which led to the start of exporting jujubes produced at the farm to the Japanese market.

Although the export began by chance, the overseas sales channels have since expanded to Taiwan, China, Australia, Vietnam, and other countries. Kim’s philosophy that the quality must be superior to compete with relatively cheaper Chinese jujubes has positively influenced the overseas market penetration.

Kim said, “Boeun jujubes have been recognized for their excellent quality, so much so that they were historically presented to kings during the Joseon Dynasty,” adding, “However, when we first started exporting, we faced the challenge of price competition with Chinese jujubes that already dominated the local market.”

For the same reason, he explained, “In the early stages of export, we had to lower prices to imprint the superiority of Boeun jujubes’ quality over Chinese ones,” and added, “We exported Boeun jujubes at prices comparable to Chinese jujubes, even without profit, as a strategy to expand our market share. But now, Boeun jujubes can compete with Chinese products at reasonable prices,” he said with a proud shrug.

The Korea Forest Service expects that jujube production will increase significantly nationwide this year compared to last year. The jujube trees at Boeun Samga Jujube Farm are densely laden with fruit. Provided by the Korea Forest Service.

Efforts to diversify products alongside developing overseas sales channels also played a key role in increasing jujube export volumes. Kim explained that this product diversification was facilitated smoothly with support from the Korea Forest Service.

Kim said, “Rather than exporting fresh jujubes as they are, a larger portion is exported as dried jujubes and processed products,” adding, “Especially for processed jujube products, the ability to create various flavors from the same raw material (jujube) helps in targeting overseas markets.”

For example, Kim’s farm offers a variety of products including fresh and dried jujubes, jujube snacks, jujube tea, jujube caramel, jujube preserves and jelly, jujube vinegar, and jujube juice. During this process, Kim received assistance from the Korea Forest Service in areas such as developing processed jujube products, designing packaging materials, and marketing to open export channels abroad.

Through the Korea Forest Service’s consistent support from production to export under the ‘Leading Organization Development and Support for Forest Product Exports’ program, the export competitiveness and ripple effects of Boeun jujubes have been enhanced. For instance, the Korea Forest Service currently maximizes promotional effects through unified export consultation offices by product category, export consultation meetings, expos, and information surveys as part of joint marketing efforts.

Export consultation offices operate for nine product categories: chestnuts, persimmons, shiitake mushrooms, jujubes, health forest products, landscaping trees, bonsai, landscaping trees, plywood boards, and wood products. Kim currently serves as the chairman of the jujube export consultation office.

Additionally, Kim’s farm won the gold prize at last year’s ‘Promising Export Item Discovery Contest’ hosted by the Korea Forest Service, receiving incentives such as overseas market development funds and consulting support from the Forest Product Export OK Support Team.

A panoramic photo of Boeun Samga Jujube Farm covered with a rain shelter. It is well known that cultivating jujubes using a rain shelter results in thinner jujube skins and higher sugar content. Provided by the Korea Forest Service

This year, with support from the export seed money project, Kim is receiving assistance for developing and registering packaging designs for overseas sales and producing promotional content for overseas markets.

Amid this support, the abundant fruit harvest this year adds vitality and expectations to the jujube farm. Kim said, “Unlike the relatively low fruit yield over the past two years, we expect a significant increase in jujube harvest this year,” adding, “With the abundant harvest combined with Korea Forest Service support, we anticipate more positive export results than ever before.”

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has made face-to-face consultations with overseas buyers difficult, posing challenges and unexpected obstacles on the ground.

Regarding this, Kim pointed out, “Although the Korea Forest Service is supporting forest product exports by holding online non-face-to-face export consultation meetings and expos, the reality is that in this special situation of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are inevitable limitations in selling products without meeting buyers directly.”

He emphasized, “Especially for food products like jujubes, the likelihood of actual purchase is low unless buyers see and taste the products in person,” and suggested, “To overcome these limitations, I would like to propose that before non-face-to-face export consultation meetings and expos are held, the Korea Forest Service help sellers send product samples to buyers in advance so they can promote directly, thereby increasing the actual purchase rate.”

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