S. Korea posts trade surplus for kimchi

By Lee Joon-seung

SEOUL, April 1 (Yonhap) --South Korea posted a trade surplus of US$5.5 million for kimchi in the first two months of the year thanks to solid gains in exports, a state-run corporation said Wednesday.

The Agro-Fisheries Trade Corp. said exports grew 7.4 percent on-year to$14.2
million as of late February with imports hitting $8.7 million. Total export
volume of the spicy, vegetable-based fermented side dish also gained 5 percent to
4,400 tons.
It said the favorable balance in trade marks the first time in four years that
exports of kimchi surpassed imports.
"It may be too early to tell, but if current trends continue, there is a
possibility that the surplus may rise sharply," a corporation official said.
He added that favorable exchange rates that make locally made products cheaper
abroad and concerns about the safety of Chinese food is helping spur overseas
demand.
Kimchi, a traditional dish made from cabbage, radishes and cucumber is eaten with
almost all Korean meals. Before a parasite egg scare in 2005, the country's
exports of the side dish totaled some $100 million per year.
The parasite scare and cheap imports from China, however, caused the country to
import more kimchi than it exported beginning in 2006, with last year's deficit
topping $27.4 million.
The trade promotion corporation, meanwhile, said it aims to increase kimchi
exports by 20 percent to $120 million this year by tightening quality control and
through diversification of export markets.
It said efforts are underway to sell more kimchi to countries like the United
States, Taiwan and Hong Kong, along with more attention being made to expand
sales in Japan, which is the largest importer of the food.