The Approaching Heat... Heated Competition Among Convenient Summer Noodles

Bibim-myeon, Naengmyeon, Makguksu Peak Season
Paldo, Nongshim, Ottogi Launch Full-Scale Bibim-myeon Marketing
CJ, Pulmuone Revamp Home-Style Naengmyeon and Makguksu

It is Ip-ha (立夏), marking the beginning of summer. The daytime high temperatures have already approached 30 degrees Celsius, bringing the heat. In the food industry, it is the season when sales of summer noodles that are both refreshing and convenient to enjoy are in full swing. Manufacturers producing bibim-myeon, ready-to-eat cold noodles, and makguksu are focusing on highlighting their flagship products to attract more consumers. Due to high inflation and soaring prices of specialty cold noodle dishes at restaurants, demand for convenient summer noodles that can be enjoyed at home is also expected to increase.

Bibimmyun is displayed on the convenience store ramen shelf.

According to the industry on the 5th, the bibim-myeon market, a representative segment of ready-to-eat summer noodles, has steadily grown from 140 billion KRW in 2020 to an estimated 180 billion KRW last year. Major ramen manufacturers such as Paldo, Nongshim, and Ottogi are competing by promoting their bibim-myeon products. The leading player is Paldo, a comprehensive food company, which launched 'Paldo Bibim-myeon' in 1984 and is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. It is a steady seller with cumulative sales of 1.7 billion units up to last year, holding over 50% market share.

Paldo started a new advertisement for 'Paldo Bibim-myeon' from the 1st to mark the peak sales season. The commercial features veteran actor Seo Kwon-soon and actor Go Gyu-pil, popular for his role as 'Chorong-i' in Crime City 3. The concept is 'The Origin of 40 Years of Bibim-myeon,' focusing on delivering the pride of authentic bibim-myeon through a cheerful story. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) Food Industry Statistics Information, retail sales of Paldo Bibim-myeon last year were about 70.6 billion KRW, ranking 10th among all ramen product categories in the market.

As a latecomer, Nongshim launched the Baehongdong brand in March 2021. Baehongdong Bibim-myeon achieved sales of 23 billion KRW in its first year, rising to 25 billion KRW in 2022 and 33 billion KRW in 2023. Last year, they released Baehongdong Jjoljjol-myeon, surpassing 10 billion KRW in sales. Nongshim has appointed broadcaster Yoo Jae-suk as the Baehongdong model for four consecutive years, focusing on increasing market share. Recently, they combined the strengths of the popular limited edition Baehongdong to launch 'Baehongdong Big Bowl Noodles,' a cup noodle version.

Ottogi's main product is Jin Bibim-myeon, introduced in 2020. This product sold 30 million packs within three months of launch, with cumulative sales reaching 130 million units. It emphasizes increasing the quantity of bibim-myeon by 20% compared to existing bibim-myeon, addressing the common complaint of insufficient portions compared to soup noodles. Last month, Ottogi strengthened its lineup by launching Jin Bibim-myeon cup noodles, which are easy to prepare and carry.

According to comprehensive research firm Global Research, during the peak summer season for bibim-myeon, consumers consume an average of 1.1 servings per month, about twice the average of 0.6 servings in other seasons.

The competition in the ready-to-eat cold noodle market is as fierce as that of bibim-myeon. CJ CheilJedang released a new product on the 25th of last month, completely renewing the taste and packaging of 'Dongchimi Mul-naengmyeon,' which has been popular for 19 years in the related market. Dongchimi Mul-naengmyeon features a traditional Pyongan-do style recipe with dongchimi broth made from Jeju winter radish and chewy noodles. Through the renewal, the dongchimi content in the broth was increased and lemon juice was added to create a clean yet deep flavor. Also, based on top-level noodle manufacturing know-how, buckwheat roasted at high temperature was used to enhance the chewy texture and savory buckwheat aroma.

Pulmuone, which has led the domestic refrigerated cold noodle market for six consecutive years since 2018, added two specialty cold noodle varieties preferred by consumers?hoe-naengmyeon (raw fish cold noodles) and arrowroot cold noodles?to its existing mul-naengmyeon and bibim-naengmyeon lineup. Last year, Pulmuone's refrigerated cold noodle sales increased by more than 7% compared to the previous year, and revenue rose by 15%, with an average summer noodle growth rate of about 9% over the past six years. Additionally, Pulmuone Foods plans to target the summer noodle market with its dried noodle brand 'Jayeon Geonmyeon,' featuring three buckwheat dried noodles: buckwheat soba launched in 2017, buckwheat bibim-myeon released last year, and perilla oil buckwheat makguksu.

An industry insider said, "The ready-to-eat cold noodle market grew about 16% compared to three years ago," adding, "It is expected to record high growth rates again this year."

Meanwhile, major Pyongyang cold noodle specialty restaurants in Seoul raised menu prices by 1,000 to 2,000 KRW due to increased labor and raw material costs, pushing the price of a bowl of cold noodles to around 15,000 KRW. According to the Korea Consumer Agency's comprehensive price information portal 'Chamgagyeok,' the average price of cold noodles in Seoul in March was 11,538 KRW, up 7.9% from the same period last year.

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