Mask wholesale company workers in Pohang, 374 kilometers southeast of Seoul, are busy packaging products for shipment on Jan. 29, 2020. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — Demands for protective face masks continue to increase as the coronavirus spreads worldwide, and countries such as China, Japan, and the United States are scrambling to purchase Korean masks, known for their exceptional quality.
Masks made in Korea are known as KF masks overseas. KF refers to the ‘Korea Filter’ certification issued by the South Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
It is rare to find a country where the government certifies masks for civilians, which is one of the main reasons why Korean masks are so popular among foreign nations.
Only South Korea and the European Union are known to certify civilian masks. China and Japan do not have a national certification system for civilian masks.
The outstanding quality of Korean masks is already accepted in China, where the coronavirus first broke out.
That is why Chinese tourists, merchants, and brokers were frequently found purchasing massive amounts of KF masks from South Korean vendors.
“In China, rich people and high ranking officials all wear KF masks,” said an industry source. “That’s how much our masks are accepted in terms of quality.”
Japan recently joined the competition to buy Korean masks, following a massive outbreak of coronavirus onboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship and a number of ensuing deaths.
They are rushing to buy the masks as the coronavirus scare is fueling rumors the 2020 Tokyo Olympics might even be cancelled.
“Recently, a large-sized import company in Japan made an offer to buy large amounts of masks,” said a source familiar with the industry. “They were worried about the Olympics.”
Even the United States, home to multinational conglomerate 3M, a mask and filter manufacturer, is counting on purchasing KF masks as an increasing number of consumers are demanding a more reliable product ever since the coronavirus outbreak.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
