Korean wave in world cuisine

KBS Global [2010-10-22]


The 2010 Seoul Gourmet Week opened at the United Nations in New York on Monday. The Korean food festival is arranged by the Seoul Metropolitan City government. Seoul thus became the first city ever to hold a food festival at the U.N. headquarters. The festival, running through October 22nd, is among the programs to be held during this year’s U.N. General Assembly session. Korean food festivals at the world body, as well as the G20 summit scheduled in Seoul next month, are expected to provide opportunities to globalize Korean cuisine.

Hansik, or Korean food, is now gaining much attention from around the world, riding the hallyu or Korean wave, which refers to the rising popularity of Korean pop culture around the globe. The global culinary culture is trending away from fast food to slow food in line with an emerging enthusiasm for health and well-being. Many of the traditional Korean foods are fermented, and that is why Korean cuisine is now in the spotlight. In fact, the efficacy of Korean foods has been scientifically proven.

The government established the Korean Food Promotion Team in May 2009 to promote Korean cuisine in a systematic way. First Lady Kim Yoon-ok has been at the forefront of the globalization campaign in her capacity as honorary chair of the Team. The Korean Food Foundation, which consists of government and private sector experts, has also launched various campaigns and activities to help execute the globalization campaign’s agenda.

The globalization of Korean food not only helps spread the Korean wave, but also increases the value of Korea’s national brand. In this sense, the government’s support is essential. Earlier this month, the government worked out measures to ease regulations for invigorating the food industry. The package measures are designed to remove regulatory obstacles and complement institutional globalization efforts for Korean food and strengthening the competitiveness of the domestic food industry.

However, the key to globalizing Korean food is to develop a menu tailored to global tastes. It is also important to standardize recipes and flavors. It is highly encouraging that world-famous chefs have positive views on the globalization of Korean food, contending that ingredients, seasoning and sauces of Korean food are applicable to global culinary culture. They also advise that modernization is more important than tradition.

The food industry is capable of becoming a staple of the “cultural contents” industry that has been emphasized especially since the beginning of the 21st century. Foreign chefs and cooks should be trained to readily serve Korean cuisines in overseas restaurants. That is an important way to prevent the hallyu of Korean cuisine from ending as a temporary phenomenon.

Hansik represents more than Korean food. It is the fruit of traditional Korean culture. To systematically develop Korean food imbued with Korean spirit and make it a global brand would bolster the national pride. Careful and rigorous efforts should be made to continue the spread of Korean food around the world.