Organic food markets gaining popularity

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff reporter

Mary-Jane Liddicoat, an Australian mother of three children, has always been making a conscious effort to buy organic and natural food products.

But after living in Korea for several years now, she knows it's hard to find stores that sell organic products.

``Korea has a fantastic beginning for the well-being environment. There's a lot of possibility. Organic food is still hard to find,'' she told The Korea Times.

Nevertheless, Liddicoat, who runs a website on the well-being lifestyle (healthyhomes.asia), has noticed an increasing number of organic food products popping up at her favorite organic food store.

It's still a far cry from the extensive organic food offerings in her native country Australia. ``It's still embryonic,'' she said, of the Korean market.

Organic foods may have gone mainstream in other developed countries, but in Korea, ``yooginong'' or organic food it is still very much a niche market.

But the organic label is more than just another marketing ploy to dupe consumers into paying more for fruits, vegetables, rice and other products.

To be certified as organic, it should be grown without the use of manufactured fertilizers, synthetic pesticides and additives.

In Korea, there are different levels of organic food certification: whether the product was grown without chemicals and chemical fertilizer for the past three years or the past year; grown without agricultural chemicals and grown with low amounts of chemicals.

The Korean food company Pulmuone is one of the pioneers in natural food products, with its three ``no's'': no preservatives, no coloring and no chemical additives.

Pulmuone has forged partnerships with nationwide cooperative farms that use organic farming methods. Using fresh organic ingredients is important, especially for the brand's ``green juice'' line of healthy drinks. Its organic tofu and three other items have been certified as organic food by the Korea Food Research Institute.

Pulmuone also has a chain of stores, Natural House Organic, which offers an extensive array of organic food, both grown locally and imported. In addition, consumers can buy Pulmuone products, such as ready-to-cook noodles, soups, kimchi, baby food, dumplings, traditional sauces and seaweed on its website www.pulmuoneshop.co.kr.

Another place to find organic food is Organic House Hegaon. Opened in 2004, Hegaon now has three stores in Gahoe-dong, Jongno; Yeonhui-dong, Seodaemun; and Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam.

The stores might be relatively small but they are surprisingly packed with a range of fresh and processed foods, wine, cheeses, snacks, noodles, rice and meat. This is the place to go to for fresh organic vegetables and fruit, and even kimchi. There's a pack of Hegaon brand brown rice chocolate chip cookies for 2,500 won, a box of berries for 7,800 won and a cup of Terre de Glace watermelon sherbet for 3,800 won.

Kate Park, a 33-year-old mother, said she always looks for the small green organic label when at the supermarket. ``It's not easy to find, but I'm making the extra effort because I want to feed my family something healthier, especially for my four-year-old son,'' she said.

Park usually buys organic soy milk, rice and fruit, although she noted it is more expensive than regular products. ``But I think it's worth it,'' she said.

Supermarket chains like E-Mart and Lotte Mart have started realizing the potential of organic and all-natural food products.

Lotte Mart offers some organic products under its house brand Wise Select. A kilo of hanmi rice (fancy short grain rice) costs 5,380 won, while chapssal (glutinous rice) costs 8,100 won. Two boxes of 16 small bottles of organic soy milk are sold for 14,000 won. However, its organic fresh food section was also sadly lacking: only cherry tomatoes and pears with the organic label were available.

At E-Mart outlets, there are usually sections devoted to natural and organic foods, such as fresh fruits, vegetables, noodles, sauces, jams, cookies, rice, juices, and cereals. While small, E-Mart's organic food section makes it easy for shoppers to determine if what they're buying is organic or not.

At Shinsegae department stores' basement food section, there is no area devoted to organic food. Instead, organic products, such as strawberry preserves, cookies, muesli and pasta noodles, are placed side-by-side with their non-organic counterparts.

Liddicoat, also the country representative for LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability), sees a growing demand for organic food, especially among the expatriate community.

``There is a growing awareness about LOHAS. The more people become aware of the impact they can have on the quality of their environment at the individual level. The easier it will be for businesses to be encouraged to provide the products that satisfy that need,'' she said.

Korean companies would have to also make an effort to provide English information about their products' ingredients and nutritional content, to be able to attract more expatriate consumers.

Imported organic foods may also be limited in the future because of a law that requires companies to have their products ``organic certified'' in Korea before it can be sold here.

``In the past, EU and American certifications were enough, but now companies need to apply for Korean certification as well. I understand it, but many organic companies in Australia are usually small farms and businesses. For companies to go through the certification process, it is not financially possible. There's already a big demand for their products around the world, so why would they be interested in bringing their products to Korea,'' she said.