Exports of Korean instant noodles last year reached a record high, with the Korea Customs Service on Feb. 15 saying they hit USD 603.57 million, up 29% from the previous year. Shown here are aisles of the noodles at Hanaro Mart in Seoul's Seocho-gu District. (Yonhap News)

By Oh Hyun Woo and Yoon Hee Young

Exports of ramyeon (instant noodles) last year reached a record high.

The Korea Customs Service on Feb. 15 said instant noodle exports reached USD 603.57 million, up 29% from the previous year and more than double from USD 290 million in 2016.

The top market was China with 24% of the shipments worth USD 149 million. The U.S. was next with USD 82.26 million, followed by Japan with USD 54.54 million, Thailand USD 26.82 million and the Philippines USD 23.67 million.

Industry analysts attributed last year's export increase to the growing perception of the noodles as emergency food along with the surging global trend to stay at home amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They also cited "jjapaguri" (translated into "ramdon"), a mixture of the instant noodle products Chapagetti and Neoguri, from the Oscar-winning film "Parasite" as spurring impressive growth in exports.

Last year's ramyeon exports were 128 times bigger than its imports (USD 4.68 million).

hyunw54@korea.kr