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KGC to launch new products containing bird nests, pomegranate for Chinese consumers
JungKwanJang's new red ginseng product using edible bird's nest / Courtesy of JungKwanJang
By Ko Dong-hwan
Korea Ginseng Corp. (KGC) has released a new health supplement product with edible bird nests to strategically target Chinese consumers, according to the state-run company, Wednesday.
The latest product by JungKwanJang, KGC's label for red ginseng products, contains extracts from swallow nests, Iranian pomegranates and red ginseng extracts in ampoule bottles.
The company said swallow nests are particularly popular in China and Indonesia for their nutritional qualities and rare availability. The product's market size in China in 2022 was 43 billion Chinese yuan ($6 billion) and it continues rising steadily, according to the company. On the country's popular e-commerce platform Tmall, health supplement products based on the ingredient topped the sales rank, according to the company.
The company said swallow nests are difficult to acquire. Particularly rare are a type built by Swinhoe's storm petrels, which contain seaweeds and fishbones, and boast nutritional qualities.
"Swallow nests have long been considered a delicacy in Chinese cuisine," a company official said. "More recently, they are used in skin care products as they contain sialic acid, minerals and collagen."
The company has launched the product at duty free shops inside international airports in Incheon and Jeju Island as well as in major cities. It plans to export the product to China.
KGC has been experimenting with globally known natural ingredients that are nutritionally exceptional to create products of its own. Last May, the company launched two products that used elderberries from Austria, velvet antler from New Zealand and black macas in Peru.