Indonesia's Green Rebel enters S.Korean alternative meat market

Indonesia-based food tech startup, Green Rebel Foods, made public its official entry into the Korean plant-based protein food market. Bryan Toh, Global Vice President of Green Rebel, announced the launch of Green Rebel in Korea at a restaurant in Seoul's Seocho district on Thursday and explained the background behind the move.

Green Rebel is a food tech company that introduces Southeast Asian cuisine made with plant-based proteins. It has already expanded into Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines, and this year, it has targeted Korea and Vietnam as its new markets.

Although the Indonesian startup may be relatively unknown in Korea, Green Rebel has already established itself in Southeast Asia. It has partnered with over 800 global brands, including Starbucks and Domino's in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, as well as luxury hotels such as Shangri-La, Westin and Marriott.

Last year, Indonesian Starbucks introduced two plant-based pies in 464 stores and sold over 111,700 pies in six months. Similarly, Domino's Pizza in Indonesia launched two special menus using Green Rebel's plant-based ingredients and sold 38,500 pizza pies, successfully extending its contract for another year.

In particular, Green Rebel formed a relationship with Korean food company CJ CheilJedang in July last year after successfully attracting investment. Toh stated that "CJ Group is a large company that leads not only the food and beverage industry but also various subsidiaries, such as logistics and entertainment, which can be utilized for various collaborations. The collaboration with CJ Group can be extended not only to the Korean market but also to global markets."

In fact, CJ CheilJedang Corp. is known to be highly interested in entering the Southeast Asian market. Given that Green Rebel's products, which are based on halal certification and Southeast Asian spices and flavors, have already been recognized as competitive in the market, there are various possibilities for collaboration. In reality, the taste of plant-based protein food between Green Rebel and CJ CheilJedang is said to have very different characteristics.

Write to Soo-Jung Ha at agatha77@hankyung.com