Sauce exports last year hit a record-high value of USD 384 million. Seen is a shelf of sauce products at a hypermarket in Seoul. (Yonhap News)

By Aisylu Akhmetzianova

Sauce exports hit a record high last year of nearly USD 400 million, according to a report. 

The Korea Customs Service (KCS) on Feb. 6 said such shipments including seasoning sauce and traditional paste reached USD 384 million last year, up 6.2% from 2022. 

Since breaking USD 300 million in 2020 for the first time, sauce exports have kept steady growth thanks to higher demand for home-cooked meals during the COVID-19 pandemic and the popularity of Hallyu (Korean Wave). 

The KCS said, "Hallyu's global popularity and K-food's status as a global cuisine likely boosted worldwide demand for sauces containing Korean flavors." 

Export volume nearly doubled to 131,800 tons from 66,000 in 2013 to reach its second-highest figure in history after 132,000 in 2021. 

By product, exports of seasoning sauce such as those for buldak (fire chicken) and bulgogi (marinated grilled beef) led all others with 62.8%. Traditional pastes like gochujang (spicy red pepper paste) took up 28.9%, followed by mainstays mayonnaise and ketchup. 

The number of sauce-importing countries also hit a record-high 139, up from 124 in 2022. The U.S. was the largest market with a share of 21.8%, followed by China (13.2%), Japan (9%), Russia (8.2%) and Vietnam (4.7%).

aisylu@korea.kr