"Small Comforts in an Era of Uncertainty"... Spicy Flavor 'Battle' in the Food Industry

'The Spicier' Trend Ignited by the Ramen Industry
Expanding Across Burgers, Mandu, Pizza, Chicken, and More
Consumers' Tastes Polarized Between Spicy and Mild Flavors

The spicy flavor competition ignited by the ramen industry is spreading throughout the food industry. From frozen dumplings, burgers, chicken, and pizza to dining-out menus, companies are emphasizing even hotter flavors to attract consumers' attention.

Lotte Wellfood recently highlighted the "extreme spiciness" with its launch of "Chef Food Crazy Bulmandu." Its Scoville heat units are more than six times higher than Nongshim's flagship product, Shin Ramyun.
[Photo by Lotte Wellfood]

According to the industry on the 13th, Lotte Wellfood recently launched a frozen dumpling product called 'Chef Food Crazy Bulmandu,' which prominently features an 'extremely strong spicy flavor.' This product highlights a gradually intensifying spiciness from the first bite to the aftertaste as its distinctive point. The spiciness comes from chili peppers from the Sichuan region, known for its spicy cuisine, and has a Scoville Heat Unit (SHU) of 23,000. This is more than six times stronger than Nongshim's flagship 'Shin Ramyun,' which has a Scoville rating of 3,400 SHU.

Haitai Confectionery, competing in the dumpling market with its 'Gohyang Mandu,' recently introduced a new product called 'Yeolbulnal Manduhaji.' It is characterized by having the highest level of spiciness ever among Gohyang Mandu products. The company explained that it targets the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z), who relieve stress through spicy flavors.

In the dining-out industry, Mom's Touch released the 'Bulbulbulbul Cyber Burger' for consumers who enjoy spicy food. This burger contains the 'Carolina Reaper,' known as one of the spiciest chili peppers. It is about four times spicier than their existing spicy burger, the 'Bul Cyber Burger.' Banolim Pizza entered the competition with the 'Ghost Pepperoni Pizza,' combining ghost pepper sauce?one of the world's spiciest peppers?and peperoncino. Additionally, in the chicken industry, Goobne recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of its 'Gochu Basasak' by launching a limited edition new menu item, 'Mala Gochu Basasak,' with enhanced spiciness, which drew attention by selling 80,000 pieces within three days of release.

The spicy flavor competition in the food industry was triggered mainly by ramen. Earlier, Nongshim launched 'Shin Ramyun The Red' in August as a limited edition, with a Scoville rating set at 7,500 SHU, more than twice that of the original Shin Ramyun. This product received great response, selling over 15 million packs within 80 days, and will be officially sold starting from the 20th. Around the same time, Ottogi released 'Ma Yeol Ramyun,' a spicier version of 'Yeol Ramyun' with added garlic and pepper, and Samyang Foods introduced a new spicy soup ramen called 'Maetang.'

Professor Lee Young-ae of the Consumer Studies Department at Incheon National University explained, "The more difficult the economic situation and the greater the uncertainty, the harder it is for individuals to achieve what they intend or plan." She added, "In such times, consumers tend to find comfort in foods where they can choose the intensity of flavor themselves, leading to a tendency to select either much spicier or extremely mild tastes." She further noted, "With the spread of videos on platforms like YouTube showing people eating more stimulating foods, a kind of challenge culture around spiciness has formed," and predicted, "Apart from everyday meals, the trend of seeking extreme flavors rather than moderate ones will continue."

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