K-food Exports to Saudi Arabia: Key Summary
- South Korea’s food exports to the Middle East grew 37.9% year-on-year in Q1FY2025, with Saudi Arabia emerging as a key market.
- Popular Korean exports include ramen, snacks, beverages, and increasingly ginseng, seaweed, and fresh fruits.
- Regulatory barriers in Saudi Arabia have historically hindered Korean food firms’ market entry.
- The rise of Hallyu (Korean Wave) has boosted demand for Korean food, with brands like Samyang and Nongshim gaining popularity.
- Korean condiments and ready-to-eat meals are resonating with Saudi consumers due to their spice and convenience.
The emergence of Saudi Arabia as a major target market has likely spawned from South Korea’s immense food export success to the general Middle East region in the first quarter of the year, where this emerged as its biggest growth market with a 37.9% year-on-year growth.
But for Saudi Arabia in particular, the local food and nutrition industry has previously expressed frustration at gaining and maintaining entry, particularly with regard to regulatory barriers and red tape.
“Saudi food regulations have traditionally been difficult to navigate due to a lack of information, and better understanding will help us to gain a clearer understanding,” the Korean Ginseng Corporation (KGC) stated via a formal statement.
As such, the local Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) is working to establish direct communications between the Saudi Arabian Food and Drug Administration and local food companies, in order to give manufacturers and exporters a clear picture of food import procedures and requirements.
“This would support the overseas expansion of Korean food firms to Saudi Arabia, which is an important market in the Middle East as it is a leading country in this region,” MFDS minister Oh Yoo-kyung said.
“A close cooperative relationship with Saudi Arabia will aid K-food’s further expansion into the Middle East.”
According to the ministry, the major K-food products being exported to Saudi Arabia include ramen, snacks, and beverages.
Exports to the Saudi Arabian market reached a new high in 2024 at US$48.3m compared to US$37.5m the year before.
It also anticipates there to be many more potential food export items that will appeal to this market, such as fresh fruits, seaweed and ginseng.
“The first step is to expand the cooperative network between the Saudi government and our local companies, and helping the food industry accurately understand Saudi regulatory information to enable successful entry,” Oh added.
“There is continued global interest in K-food, and MFDS will expand our cooperative relationships with regulatory agencies in [this region] to ensure that these food products actively enter the Middle Eastern market beyond Saudi Arabia too.”
K-food in Saudi Arabia
Much like populations in many other parts of the world, Saudi Arabian consumers have also fallen under the spell of South Korea’s Hallyu phenomenon, also known as the Korean Wave, covering many areas from dramas to pop music to food.
This is also in no small part due to Korean supermarkets and restaurants popping up all over the market.
Popular Korean food brands here include Samyang’s Buldak, best known for its spicy ramyeon noodles and Nongshim which is popular for kimchi cup noodles.
Noodles aside, condiments such as Korean chilli paste gochujang have made its way into many Saudi kitchens due to the spice levels being able to appeal to local palates; and ready-to-eat meals like Korean rice cakes topokki are popular due to being convenient meal options.
Saudi Arabia only really opened up its trade market and modernised women’s rights in the past few years, after which it has become a popular exports target market for many countries such as South Korea due to its large population, strategic location and high spending power.
