Lotte Mart and Supermarkets Sell Strawberries Picked Early Morning Same Day... "Maximizing Freshness"

'Sae-byeok Strawberry' Available from the 20th
3,000 KRW Discount Until the 26th

Lotte Mart announced on the 18th that it will start selling ‘Sae-byeok Strawberry’ at all stores in the metropolitan area and 15 stores in Yeongnam and Honam regions from the 20th. Lotte Super will begin sales at two stores, Samcheon and Pohang.

Lotte Mart Zeta Flex Jamsil Branch strawberry section view. Provided by Lotte Mart.

Sae-byeok Strawberry is an ultra-fresh product harvested and displayed within 10 hours. It is harvested around 3 a.m. from major production areas such as Nonsan, Samnye, and Damyang, with sorting and packaging completed by the morning, and displayed in stores by 2 to 3 p.m. This reduces the distribution time by more than half compared to regular strawberries harvested in the morning and sold the next day, thereby enhancing freshness.

Last year, along with Seolhyang, Geumsil, and Vitaberry strawberries, Seolhyang strawberries cultivated using the Tyvek farming method were introduced as Sae-byeok Strawberries. This year, a total of five products will be offered, focusing on the representative product ‘Sae-byeok Seolhyang Strawberry (1kg, domestic)’ and adding Kingsberry strawberries.

Lotte Mart and Lotte Super prepared Sae-byeok Strawberries to provide fresh strawberries ahead of the spring season when temperatures rise. Strawberries are the most temperature-sensitive fruit. In winter, the low temperature makes the flesh firm and less prone to bruising. However, in the warm spring, the strawberry’s pulp temperature (the temperature of the agricultural product itself) rises, causing the characteristic gloss to disappear and the flesh to weaken. This often results in bruising or softening during harvesting, sorting, and transportation. Therefore, Lotte Mart and Lotte Super have collaborated with strawberry farms and local agricultural cooperatives to harvest during the early morning when temperatures and pulp temperatures are low, offering Sae-byeok Strawberries with high firmness and freshness.

To enhance the freshness of Sae-byeok Strawberries, Lotte Mart and Lotte Super use the ‘Ban-jul (half-row) packing’ method. Compared to the ‘Jul (row) packing’ method, which neatly arranges the strawberries, the Ban-jul method involves fewer hand contacts and shorter processing time. Also, because the space between strawberries is wider than in the Jul packing method, the contact area between the fruits is smaller, making it easier to maintain freshness.

The ‘Sae-byeok Strawberry,’ which compensates for the temperature sensitivity of strawberries, has seen steadily increasing customer demand due to its high freshness. In fact, sales of Sae-byeok Strawberries at Lotte Mart have increased every year over the past three years, with about a 10% increase last year alone.

Lotte Mart is also offering a discount of 3,000 KRW per pack when purchasing two or more packs of Sae-byeok Strawberries until the 26th. Shin Hansol, MD (Merchandiser) of the Fruit Team at Lotte Mart and Lotte Super, said, “We prepared Sae-byeok Strawberries to deliver the freshness of the production areas directly to customers visiting our stores. We will continue to discover new production areas and introduce more diverse ultra-fresh products, thereby establishing differentiated fresh food competitiveness unique to Lotte Mart and Lotte Super.”

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