Daesang’s first Korean kimchi plant in US up and running

South Korean food maker Daesang Corp. has completed the construction of a kimchi plant in the US, its first factory outside Asia, which the company plans to use as the global manufacturing hub for the Korean staple.

Daesang, the producer of globally renowned kimchi products under its Jongga brand, said on Tuesday its kimchi factory in the City of Industry, Los Angeles, has begun production.

The plant, the first kimchi-making facility in the US built by a Korean food maker, can produce 2,000 tons of kimchi annually. Daesang has spent 20 billion won ($16.4 million) to build production lines and warehouses at the facility.

The company said it plans to expand the facility with an annual sales target of 100 billion won by 2025.

“In the past, over 90% of kimchi in the US was consumed by Korean residents or Asians living there. But now it has become a global food enjoyed by everyone,” said a Daesang official.

In the US, the company plans to offer kimchi in 10 different varieties tailored to local consumers' tastes. The products will include vegan kimchi, beet and pickle kimchi and white kimchi, which is less spicy as it doesn’t use red pepper flakes.

Daesang said it will also produce six different kinds of less spicy pepper paste, called “gochujang” in Korean, under the O’Food brand at the LA plant.

It plans to source ingredients such as cabbages, radishes and green onions from local farmers and producers near LA to make fresh kimchi.

K-FOOD’S GROWING POPULARITY

The launch of Korea’s first kimchi plant in the US comes as the Korean staple is becoming part of global K-food alongside the soaring popularity of Korean culture such as the K-drama Squid Game and K-pop sensation BTS.

Enjoyed as a central part of Korean cuisine, fermented kimchi has been recognized as a health food by some US states.

In late February, New York became the third US state to designate Nov. 22 “Kimchi Day” to commemorate and promote the consumption of the Korean staple.

The New York General Assembly also adopted a resolution, specifying that South Korea is kimchi's country of origin and endorsed the traditional culture and process of preparing kimchi inscribed in 2013 on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The US state of Virginia also passed a bill last month, designating Nov. 22 Kimchi Day, following California, which passed a similar resolution in August 2021.

GLOBAL BASE FOR EXPORTS

Daesang, which began to sell its kimchi products under the Jongga brand at Walmart last year, said it will expand its US kimchi sales to other outlets such as Costco.

Its US plant will also serve as a global base for exports to Canada and countries in Europe and Oceania, it said.

Daesang’s kimchi exports to the US reached $16.2 million in 2021, up 37.8% from the previous year.

The company’s total global shipments of kimchi products stood at $67 million last year, up 131% from $29 million in 2016.

Since 1973, Daesang has been operating nine global production sites – food, bio and sugar factories – in countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, China and the Philippines. The US factory is Daesang’s 10th production facility in an overseas market.

Write to Sul-Li Jun at sljun@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.