Business sector pulls efforts to boost seafood consumption

As the Fukushima power plant in Japan began releasing wastewater, concerns about domestic seafood consumption decrease are growing in South Korea. The country’s business circles are making efforts to boost its consumption.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced on Monday that it is pursuing a plan to add seafood sellers to the welfare platform for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which the Ministry of SMEs and Startups jointly operate to expand SMEs’ sales channels. The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry will provide opportunities for seafood sellers, as requested by the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives to sell their products on the platform.

The chamber is also engaging in promotion activities to encourage its member countries to use domestic seafood products as Chuseok gifts. These are the follow-up measures after a discussion between the chamber’s Chairman Chey Tae-won, Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Cho Seung-hwan, and Chairman of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives Noh Dong-jin on a win-win plan for domestic companies and the fisheries.

The Korea International Trade Association and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries are conducting a campaign to boost seafood consumption. The association sent a notice to its members, proposing to use marine products that are expected to have large unconsumed inventory for group catering or use domestic seafood products as Chuseok gifts. The association also plans to recruit participants for workation in seaside towns, providing expenses for housing and experiences. On Wednesday, the association’s Chairman Koo Ja-yeol discussed measures to increase seafood consumption with Minister Cho and Chairman Noh and said that the association will proactively cooperate.

Individual companies are also making efforts to boost seafood consumption. HD Hyundai decided to add dishes using Korean rockfish and abalones, whose sales have been slow lately, to the menu of 86 cafeterias across its business sites. With about 55,000 employees of the group eating meals per day, 100 tons of additional seafood consumption is expected to be made by the end of this year. “We have always tried to help farmers and fishermen by making large-scale purchases whenever they faced issues,” said a member of HD Hyundai. “We signed an agreement with the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives as we heard that the sales of farm-raised Korean rockfish and abalones have been slow.”

On Wednesday, the South Korean government will hold a meeting to discuss ways to increase domestic seafood consumption with catering companies, including Samsung Welstory, Shinsegae Food, and CJ Freshway.


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