Gwangju-Jeonnam Food Exports Totaling 546 Million USD in October

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] The Gwangju Regional Customs Office (Customs Director Jeong Seung-hwan) announced the export trends of the food industry in the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions based on cumulative data up to October this year.

Food industry exports from the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions amounted to 546 million USD, marking a 20.5% increase compared to the same period last year.

In the Gwangju area, exports were mainly driven by seaweed such as gim and miyeok, while in the Jeonnam area, exports of gim and powdered milk increased.

The share of food exports from the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions accounted for 1.1% of the total exports from these regions, and 6.9% of the national food exports, which is a 0.4% increase compared to the same period last year.

By region, as of October, food exports from Gwangju reached 95 million USD, a 17.4% increase compared to the same period last year. The share of food exports in Gwangju accounted for 0.7% of Gwangju’s total exports and 1.2% of the national food exports.

By item, compared to the same period last year, tobacco (124.1%), gim (148.2%), and miyeok (112.8%) increased, while beer (22.6%) and snacks (16.7%) decreased.

By destination, exports increased to Hong Kong (10.0%), the United States (577.9%), Japan (54.9%), and Russia (27.6%), while exports to China decreased by 82.0%.

As of October this year, food exports from the Jeonnam region reached 451 million USD, a 21.2% increase compared to the same period last year. The share of food exports in Jeonnam accounted for 1.2% of Jeonnam’s total exports and 5.7% of the national food exports, which is a 0.4% increase compared to the same period last year.

By item, compared to the same period last year, gim (21.1%), powdered milk (100.0%), yuzu processed foods (12.7%), and miyeok (21.8%) increased, while abalone (3.0%) decreased.

By destination, exports increased to the United States (22.0%), China (34.3%), Taiwan (28.7%), and Russia (184.7%), while exports to Japan decreased by 5.6%.

Gim exports from the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions have shown a steady upward trend since 2019, with export value reaching 172 million USD as of October this year, a 23.0% increase compared to the same period last year, accounting for 30.4% of the national gim export value.

Kimchi exports have also steadily increased, but as of October 2021, their share of national kimchi exports was about 5.8%.

Rapidly growing export items include Spanish mackerel from the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions, which increased by 670.2% compared to the same period last year, followed by radish seeds (250.8%), soy sauce (164.9%), and chestnuts (136.9%).

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