Pulmuone Posts 25.5% Growth in Shelf-Stable Sales in H1, Fueled by Product Lineup Expansion

◦ Shelf-stable products expand to 13% of total food sales; shelf-stable online channel sales surge 51.9% year-on-year

◦ Competitive strengths in beverages, Korean-style convenience foods (soups, sauces), and noodles extended to shelf-stable lineup

◦ Multiple new product launches in H1 — including soy milk, tofu chips, and natto products — established shelf-stable as a new growth engine

SEOUL – September 2, 2026 – Pulmuone Foods (CEO Young-hoon Chun) announced that its shelf-stable product sales grew 25.5% year-on-year in the first half of 2026, setting an all-time record. Having long built its business around fresh, refrigerated, and frozen convenience foods, Pulmuone is now delivering results in portfolio diversification through an active push into shelf-stable products.

Over the past several years, Pulmuone has prioritized the expansion of its shelf-stable business alongside its established refrigerated and frozen product lines. After initially launching shelf-stable products in select categories, the company established a dedicated 'Shelf-Stable Business Activation Task Force' in early last year, operating it for three months to define its strategic direction and formalize new product development plans. Building on this foundation, Pulmuone has actively expanded its shelf-stable lineup, centering on categories where it already holds competitive strengths — including noodles, soups, Korean-style sauces, and beverages. The strategy is to bring the product development capabilities and brand equity built through its refrigerated and frozen businesses into the shelf-stable market.

The expansion of the shelf-stable business is also highly significant from a profitability management perspective. Shelf-stable products are capable of making a more accretive contribution to operating profit than refrigerated or frozen products, and their longer shelf life offers an added advantage for export. Pulmuone's ultimate goal is to build strong market leadership in the shelf-stable segment by reinforcing product competitiveness and scaling the business.

Growth in the shelf-stable business was particularly pronounced in online channels. Online shelf-stable sales in the first half of 2026 surged 51.9% year-on-year. Compared to the first half of 2021 — before the shelf-stable portfolio was established — sales have soared 791.8%, and compared to the first half of 2023, when shelf-stable products began to launch in earnest, they have grown 373%. The ease of storage and shipping associated with shelf-stable products makes them especially well-suited for online channels.

Fueled by this growth, the share of shelf-stable products in Pulmuone Foods' total food sales expanded from approximately 7% in the first half of 2024 to 13% in the first half of 2026.

Breaking down performance by category, performance has been particularly strong in beverages, Korean-style convenience foods (soups and sauces), and noodles.

In beverages, Pulmuone launched 'Im Real 100' last year — a shelf-stable brand that applies the additive-free principles of its fresh-squeezed juice brand 'Im Real.' The flagship product, 'Im Real 100 High Concentrate,' surpassed cumulative sales of 20 million units within just a year and a half of its launch, and exports to China began at the end of March. Pulmuone plans to actively expand its overseas distribution channels, leveraging the logistical advantages of shelf-stable products.

In soups and Korean-style sauces, Pulmuone is expanding its shelf-stable lineup centered on 'Bandeuthan-sik,' a premium Korean food brand embodying the company's wholesome food values. Its shelf-stable soup products, first introduced in 2022, have grown at an average annual growth rate of 160.4% through 2025, while its shelf-stable Korean-style sauce line, launched in 2024, continues to grow at more than 80%.

In noodles, Pulmuone has extended its product development capabilities as the nation's No.1 brand in the refrigerated noodle market into the shelf-stable segment. Since launching four shelf-stable noodle varieties in August last year — stir-fried jajangmyeon, stir-fried jjamppong, udon, and kalguksu (Korean knife-cut noodles) — monthly shelf-stable noodle sales have grown more than 600% compared to the initial launch period. Pulmuone is leveraging its shelf-stable noodle lineup as a new growth driver for its overall noodle business.

Pulmuone is continuing to accelerate the expansion of its shelf-stable portfolio in 2026 through the development of new product categories. In the first half of the year, the company introduced a series of new products including 'Soybean Soy Milk,' 'Soybean Tofu Chips,' two natto products (Natto Shake and Natto Enzyme), two pasta varieties (Tomato Spaghetti and Garlic Oil Spaghetti), and 'Jigusikdan Slim Fit Bean Noodles.'

"We plan to continue introducing differentiated shelf-stable products that raise consumer satisfaction, drawing on Pulmuone's accumulated product development capabilities and brand competitiveness," said Myeong-rang Yoon, Head of Global Marketing at Pulmuone Foods. "We will scale up the shelf-stable business as a new growth engine, driving both top-line expansion and improved profitability."

[Photo] A selection of Pulmuone's key shelf-stable products (from left: 'Im Real 100 High Concentrate Blueberry,' 'Bandeuthan-sik Green Onion Brisket Yukgaejang,' and 'Flame-Cooked Stir-Fried Jajangmyeon')