Pulmuone’s Original Korean Kimchi to Expand to 10,000 Stores in US

◦ After entering Walmart, Pulmuone kimchi to hit shelves of Kroger and local supermarket stores

◦ Original Korean kimchi of Pulmuone now available in 10,000 stores in US

◦ Pulmuone’s strategy of exporting original kimchi widely recognized by US retailers

SEOUL – Aug 21^st, 2019 – Pulmuone’s original Korean kimchi made in the country of origin with native ingredients is now available in 10,000 stores of big-name retailers and local supermarket stores in the U.S.

Pulmuone Foods announced on 20th that the company is now selling its kimchi products in 10,000 stores in the U.S. by partnering with Kroger, the nation’s 2nd-largest retailer, following its partnership with Walmart for the supply of the Korean traditional dish.

▲ Pulmuone's original Korean kimchi products are now available in 10,000 stores in US

Original Korean kimchi of Pulmuone, produced in the Global Kimchi Plant located in Jeolla Province, Republic of Korea, hit shelves of Walmart’s 3,000 stores and Publix’s 1,100 stores in the U.S. in June 2019. Now that Pulmuone has signed to newly enter 5,000 stores of Kroger, Safeway and Food Lion, its kimchi products of Korean origin are for sale in 10,000 U.S. stores in total.

By making deals with more than 20 U.S. distributors, Pulmuone secured various distribution channels including large-size retailers, supermarkets and convenience stores to sell its kimchi to consumers in cities, counties and towns across the U.S.

The total number of stores in the U.S. eligible for distributing kimchi products is estimated at about 20,000 as of recently, and Pulmuone is planning to make aggressive efforts to expand to more stores in the U.S. market.

The nationwide recognition for Pulmuone’s kimchi can be explained by the strategy of exporting it as a product of Korean origin. Amid the flow of non-authentic budget kimchi products made by Chinese and Japanese companies, Pulmuone established the Global Kimchi Plant in the National Food Cluster area in Iksan city, Republic of Korea in May 2019 with an aim to proudly present the traditional staple of Korean cuisine to markets across the world.

Pulmuone chose to export original Korean kimchi mainly due to the characteristics of kimchi as a fermented food that is highly sensitive to the country of origin of the ingredients. Contrary to popular belief in the food industry that local production is suitable for kimchi manufacturers, the original kimchi with the right quality and level of fermentation can only be produced through domestic production method because of the following reasons:

• As the varieties of cabbage and radish, the main ingredients for kimchi, differ from country to country, it is difficult for a kimchi manufacturer to simulate the taste of original kimchi through local production. Even in a case where one grows cabbage and radish of domestic species on overseas soil, its taste is not the same with original kimchi because of the difference in temperature and soil condition.

• As kimchi is a fermented food with microorganisms that are heavily affected by indigenous soil and air, producing kimchi in foreign countries can only fail to achieve the original taste that comes from the authentic fermentation.

“Earlier there had been concerns over the method of shipping original Korean kimchi to foreign markets, but it turned out Pulmuone’s bold decision is highly appreciated by the U.S. retailers.” said Jun-hwa Lee, a Category Manager at Pulmuone Foods Korea. “Pulmuone’s original Korean kimchi has already proven its potential in the U.S. market, and we will make further efforts to present kimchi as the Korean traditional food to global markets going forward.”

Previous press releases on Pulmuone kimchi:

[Jun 26] Pulmuone Kimchi to Hit Shelves of 5,000 Walmart and Publix Stores in US: http://www.pulmuone.co.kr/en/newsroom/viewPulmuoneNews.do?id=994

[May 26] Pulmuone Opens a Smart Kimchi Plant to Kickstart Global Exports:

http://www.pulmuone.co.kr/en/newsroom/viewPulmuoneNews.do?id=993

About Pulmuone Co., Ltd.

Pulmuone, Korea’s leading company for wholesome foods, conducts business in a wide variety of areas, including functional foods, meal services, concession businesses, whole food distribution, mineral water, and fermented milk.

Pulmuone first entered overseas markets in 1991 by establishing a subsidiary in the U.S. Now with additional subsidiaries in China and Japan, and as an owner of U.S.’s #1 tofu brand Nasoya, the company is growing into a global enterprise.

About Pulmuone’s Global Kimchi Plant

Pulmuone has opened a smart kimchi manufacturing plant on May 24^th, 2019 to boost its global exports of the fermented traditional Korean side dish. The Global Kimchi Plant, a 30,000-square-meter facility located in Iksan, Korea, is expected to accommodate the growing demand for premium kimchi in the global markets with its annual capacity of 10,000 tons of kimchi variations including vegan napa cabbage kimchi, vegan napa cabbage white kimchi, vegan cubed radish kimchi, etc.

The new kimchi plant is equipped with modern technologies for its automated ingredient storage, processing, packaging and shipping. The entire manufacturing process is monitored by IP (Internet Protocol) cameras and IoT (Internet of Things) sensors to maintain temperature, humidity and salt concentrations at a constant level, and RFID (Radio-Frequency Identification) technology is applied for real-time storage management to ensure the optimized fermentation of each of the products with different destinations including the U.S., China and Japan.