Latin America (LATAM) has been a growing food trade partner for South Korea in the past few years, according to data from the Korean Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation (aT) information platform KATI.
In FY2024 alone, South Korea agri-food exports to this market were valued at US$109m (1% of total exports) and imports from LATAM were valued at US$2.2b (6.4% of total imports).
This growing trade relationship has prompted the South Korean government to prioritise food safety management on both ends.
“We have offered training for the food safety regulatory agencies of eight Latin American countries in order to help strengthen the food safety management of both exports and imports,” Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) Minister Oh Yoo-kyung said via a formal statement.
“These eight LATAM countries (Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru) make up the bulk of agri-food trade with South Korea, so on-site safety before export takes place is important both to the exporters and the importers.”
Important LATAM agri-food exports into South Korea
- Chicken (Brazil)
- Coffee (Brazil)
- Squid (Peru)
- Avocado (Peru)
- Shrimp (Ecuador)
This training is part of MFDS’ Central and South American Export and Import Food Safety Management Capacity Building project which runs from 2023 to 2027.
“This project aims to transfer Korea’s food safety management know-how to Central and South American food safety management officials, to conduct preemptive safety management of food imported into Korea,” she added.
“This will then serve to both strengthen and publicise the safety and quality of South Korean foods (K-food), and pave the way for us to export more K-food to the LATAM market.”
The project is considered an Official Development Assistance (ODA) project where the South Korean government offers aid to developing countries, with the goal of economic development and social welfare promotion.
This is not MFDS’ first ODA foray with food safety management – in 2024, it successfully assisted Vietnam to complete and launch a new digital food safety management system with a focus on food poisoning monitoring.
This was the culmination of some six years of work that started with the Korea-Vietnam Summit in 2018. Vietnam’s new system closely follows South Korea’s own with localisation to Vietnamese requirements.
Food export focus as well
The project comprises modules of both the LATAM food safety officers in South Korea for food safety training, as well as MFDS officials heading to LATAM markets.
“In addition to goodwill and positive publicity from the trainings and exchanges, we also hope to maximise the potential of K-food in these markets,” MFDS added.
“As such, MFDS will be visiting Ecuador and El Salvador later in 2025 to both introduce South Korea’s food safety management system in more detail to local officials and industry players and share management know-how; as well as hold a K-food exhibition locally in each market to support exports and promotion.”
Oh stressed that solidifying food safety between these markets is crucial to increasing positive export and import experiences between all parties.
“This is why we are enthusiastic about this ODA project as a good opportunity to solidify partnerships with the LATAM region,” she said.
“It is a very vital strategy for South Korea to contribute in both helping these countries as well as creating a safe food trade environment in the region.”