Lotte Food Receives Commendation from Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for Exporting Canned Ham

Team Leader Jeong-sik Kwon (right) and Officer Ji-eun Yeon (left) of Lotte Food's Overseas Sales Team are holding their respective certificates of commendation.

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] Korea has achieved a trade surplus in canned ham exports thanks to Lotte Food's active expansion of canned ham exports.

On the 30th, Lotte Food announced that its overseas sales team, responsible for export operations, received commendations in recognition of their contribution to expanding canned ham exports from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

Kwon Jeong-sik, team leader of Lotte Food's overseas sales team, received a commendation from the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for his contribution to revitalizing exports of domestically produced canned ham. Yeon Ji-eun, a member of the same team, received a commendation from the Minister of Food and Drug Safety for actively cooperating in export operations with outstanding initiative.

Since 2019, Lotte Food has actively worked to expand exports of domestically produced canned ham. The export volume of Lotte Food's canned ham was under 100 tons until 2018 but increased to 347 tons in 2019 and 1,111 tons in 2020. As of November this year, the cumulative volume reached 2,697 tons, accounting for 59% of Korea's total canned ham export volume (4,560 tons), contributing significantly to the expansion of Korea's canned ham exports.

According to data from the Korea Customs Service, Korea's annual canned ham export value, which was below 4 million USD until 2018, recorded 9.4 million USD in 2020. As of November 2021, it reached 18.11 million USD, nearly doubling compared to the previous year. Based on November data, the canned ham trade balance recorded a surplus of 8.14 million USD, marking the first surplus since 2000.

Following the pioneering of canned ham exports to Singapore in June last year, Lotte Food resumed exports to the Philippines in August with 'Chicken Luncheon Meat,' after a two-year hiatus.

Currently, Lotte Food's canned ham is exported to eight countries worldwide, including Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, Australia, Chile, and Mexico. The company plans to continue its efforts to develop markets and expand export routes to Indonesia, Thailand, Mongolia, Japan, and Russia.

A Lotte Food official stated, “With the technology to produce Korea's first square canned ham, we are actively pioneering export routes for Korean canned ham,” adding, “We will further expand exports with customized products suitable for each country's policies and food culture, contributing to Korea's establishment as a powerhouse in processed meat products.”

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