Damyang-gun Wins Grand Prize at KOREA World Food Championship

Gwak Gyeongja (Baekse Sidae Balhyo Myeongga CEO), Kang Sunim (Kang Sunim Slow Food CEO) Receive Speaker of the National Assembly Award

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Chunsu] Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do announced on the 4th that Gwak Gyeongja (CEO of Baekse Sidae Fermentation House) and Kang Sunim (CEO of Kang Sunim Slow Food) participated in the ‘2022 KOREA World Food Championship’ exhibition competition (special exhibition) held at the aT Center in Yangjae-dong, Seoul from the 28th to the 30th of last month and won the prestigious Grand Prize, the ‘Speaker of the National Assembly Award.’

This competition featured over 900 teams and more than 2,600 participants from high school, university, general, and international divisions worldwide. It was the largest cooking competition nationwide in the second half of this year, sponsored by 20 government agencies including the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, and related organizations, and hosted by the Korea Culinary Association.

Gwak Gyeongja, participating as part of the ‘Korean Medicinal Food Culture Research Institute’ team, submitted brown rice yogurt made using brown rice sweet rice fermented with native fermentation bacteria (nuruk bacteria). Kang Sunim submitted Obang Rice Yeot, a traditional rice syrup reflecting the image of Damyang agricultural products such as turmeric, bamboo leaves, black sesame, and purple sweet potato, and both were awarded.

Gwak Gyeongja said, “I feel a great responsibility to continue inheriting and developing the wisdom of our ancestors,” adding, “I hope the day will come when our traditional foods are recognized as healthy foods of the 21st century, as an ambassador promoting Changpyeong Slow City to the world.”

Kang Sunim expressed, “It feels like a reward for the life I have preserved by making rice syrup for 40 years,” and stated, “I will work hard to revive our traditional foods and develop them into a global slow food.”

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