Food exports from January to September eclipsed USD 8 billion for the first time. Shown is the ramyeon (instant noodles) section of a convenience store in Seoul's Jongno-gu District. (Kim Seon Ah)

By Kim Seon Ah

Food exports from January to September this year eclipsed USD 8 billion for the first time in history.

The Korea Customs Service on Oct. 28 said the first three quarters saw such overseas shipments rise 8.9% year on year to USD 8.48 billion.

This marked the ninth consecutive year of growth from 2016 with USD 6.06 billion to last year.

By item, processed foods, which comprise 61.3% of food exports, rose 6.7% to USD 5.2 billion. Among others seeing growth, those of seafood rose 11.2% to USD 2.33 billion, livestock 50.3% to USD 280 million, agriculture 5.6% to USD 660 million and forestry 24.6% to USD 20 million.

The leader was ramyeon (instant noodles), which grew 24.5% to USD 1.13 billion, followed by gim (dried seaweed), which increased 14% to USD 880 million. Other risers included snacks (up 2% to USD 570 million), coffee products (15.8% to USD 280 million) sauces (7.2% to USD 310 million) and beverages (2.6% to USD 520 million).

By market, three countries accounted for over half of food exports: the U.S. (18.9% or USD 1.6 billion), China (17.7% or USD 1.5 billion) and Japan (13.7% or USD 1.16 billion). The growth rate for exports to the U.S. was 13.1%, China 12.5% and Japan 6.7%.

sofiakim218@korea.kr