Park Jinseon, President of the Food Industry Association: "We Will Promote the Excellence of K-Food in the Global Market"

Inauguration Press Conference Held on the 15th
'ANUGA 2025' to Mark a Turning Point for K-Food's Global Competitiveness
Establishing an Overseas Safety Information Platform to Provide Practical Information

"We will promote the excellence of Korean food in the global market."

Park Jinseon, president of the Korea Food Industry Association, attended an inauguration commemorative press conference at the association's headquarters in Seocho-gu, Seoul, at 10 a.m. on the 15th, where he stated, "The association is making every effort to strengthen the global competitiveness of K-Food." Park became the 23rd president of the Korea Food Industry Association on July 31. His term will run until July 30, 2028.

Park Jinseon, president of the Korea Food Industry Association, is delivering a greeting at the inauguration commemorative press conference held at the association's headquarters in Seocho-gu, Seoul, at 10 a.m. on the 15th.

Making his first official appearance, Park declared the globalization of K-Food as his top priority upon taking office. He said, "Korea will participate as the guest of honor at 'ANUGA 2025,' the world's largest food fair held in Germany. This will be an opportunity to showcase the excellence of Korean food to the world and serve as a turning point for K-Food to expand its global competitiveness." ANUGA is recognized as the most prestigious event in the global food industry. More than 8,000 companies from over 100 countries participate, and over 160,000 industry professionals attend, making it the world's largest B2B food exhibition. This is the first time Korea has been invited as the guest of honor. The organizers will grant Korea exclusive special status, allowing for comprehensive promotion of the competitiveness of the Korean food industry.

The association will set up a "K-Food Leading Companies Pavilion" with 88 booths featuring 12 leading domestic food companies at the main hall entrance. The strategy is to prominently display the innovation and diversity of Korean food in the area that visitors encounter first. Park stated, "We will turn the challenges facing the food industry into opportunities, strengthen the industry’s foundation, and lead a new leap for Korean food on the global stage."

Established in 1969, the Korea Food Industry Association has served as a central force driving the development of Korea’s food industry. The association has played roles across the industry, including protecting the interests of the food sector, improving food safety systems, providing hygiene education, and reviewing labeling and advertising. Recently, the association's activities have expanded further. It has strengthened cooperation not only with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, but also with the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Fair Trade Commission, broadening support across the industry to include regulatory rationalization, raw material supply stability, establishment of fair trade practices, export promotion, and protection of overseas intellectual property rights.

At the press conference, Park reiterated the core priorities he announced upon taking office. He said, "We will build an overseas safety information platform to help overcome complex export certification and customs clearance procedures, as well as differences in regulations by country. Through this, we will provide practical information that small and medium-sized companies and association members struggling with exports can actually use."

He also stated, "We will establish a rapid crisis response system for food safety to provide strong support not only for large corporations but also for small and medium-sized companies." He added, "We will secure and expand tariff rate quota (TRQ) volumes in a stable manner, closely analyze fluctuations in raw materials and prices, and continue to consult with the government to improve a stable and transparent joint purchasing system."

Communication was also highlighted as an important task. Park emphasized, "We will broaden communication channels so that the voices of small and medium-sized companies can be reflected, and expand their participation on the board of directors to strengthen the board so it can address diverse demands and realities."

Park also voiced candid opinions on key industry issues. He pointed out, "To fundamentally resolve industrial accidents, the mindset of each company's CEO must change. There are limits to what can be achieved through technical measures alone."

Park is the third-generation owner-executive of Sempio Foods. After graduating from Seoul National University with a degree in electronic engineering, he earned a master's in electronic engineering from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in philosophy from Ohio State University. He worked as a professor at Villanova University in the United States before joining Sempio in 1994, and has served as CEO since 1997.

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