A product image of Kooksoondang Brewery Co.’s “makgeolli” provided by the company on March 21, 2023.
SEOUL, March 21 (Korea Bizwire) — Kooksoondang Brewery Co. said Tuesday its annual exports hit a record high last year thanks to the growing global popularity of the Korean traditional liquor “makgeolli.”
Makgeolli is a traditional Korean rice liquor known for its cloudy, milky appearance.
The Korean brewer said it posted US$10.7 million in exports last year, the highest since the company started exporting the alcoholic beverage in 1993.
It also marked the second consecutive year for the figure to surpass $10 million, it said.
Kooksoondang’s products are sold in 50 countries worldwide. Its largest export country is the United States, which accounts for around one-third of its total global sales, it said.
Exports of makgeolli have been on an upward trend recently. Outbound shipments of the traditional liquor reached 15,396 tons last year, up 5.1 percent from a year earlier.
Compared with 2019, the figure is a 20.5 percent increase, according to data from the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp.
(Yonhap)
