Domestically made snacks last year saw record-high export volume of USD 46.6 million. Shown is the snack section of a hypermarket branch in Seoul. (Yonhap News)

By Lee Kyoung Mi and Yoon Sojung

Domestically made snacks last year saw record-high exports.

The Korea Customs Service (KCS) on March 24 said such overseas shipments reached an estimated USD 466 million.

This record-high amount was 13.1% more than that in 2020.

Snack exports had steadily declined since 2014, but those in 2020, when the pandemic broke out, saw a jump of 10% from the previous year. 

In January and February this year, such exports hit an estimated USD 75 million, up 16.6% from the same period last year and a record high for both months combined.

The main export markets were the U.S., Japan and China. Korea exported snacks to 125 countries last year, up from 118 in 2020, with four -- Nauru, Malawi, the Solomon Islands and Tonga – newly added to the list.

By item, baked goods such as cookies, pies and biscuits sold the most with USD 335 million, comprising a whopping 71.9% of export volume. Sugar confectionery such as chewing gum, candies and jellies was next (USD 110 million), followed by chocolate confectionery (USD 21 million).

The KCS said, "Snack demand increased because of the longer hours customers spent at home due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic," adding, "Interest in Korean snacks also rose thanks to higher consumption of Korean cultural content and the snacks' exposure in globally popular Korean films and dramas."

km137426@korea.kr