Samyang to ramp up ramyeon production for US exports

Korean food manufacturer Samyang Foods on Wednesday held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new plant in Milyang, South Gyeongsang Province, as the company aims to capitalize on the growing global popularity of its spicy ramyeon brand, the Buldak series, especially in the US market.

The new plant, set to be completed by 2025, will have an annual production capacity of 560 million units. With the addition of the new plant, the company's combined production capacity will surge to 2.36 billion units at its four plants in Korea.

In Milyang, the company already operates a plant dedicated to exports to China. The new second plant will become a production base for the US market, with 164.3 billion won ($122.9 million) being injected into the site.

Samyang’s production expansion comes as the company reported robust growth in US sales. Samyang America, the company's US subsidiary, posted $87.6 million in sales in the first nine months of 2023, a 142 percent surge from $48 million during the same period in 2022.

Currently, Samyang's ramyeon products are sold in major US retailers like Costco, Walmart and Albertsons, with plans to ramp up marketing and sales activities there through the hiring of more employees locally.

"Samyang has decided to build a second factory in Milyang to actively explore the export market at a moment when the company is stepping up as a global food enterprise," Samyang Roundsquare CEO Kim Jung-soo during Wednesday’s ceremony.

"The second Milyang factory focuses on production innovations, including rapid mass production and advanced automation, with enhanced efficiency.”

Largely buoyed by Buldak ramyeon sales, Samyang has renewed its sales records in recent years from 642 billion won in 2021, to 909 billion won in 2022, to 1.93 billion won in 2023. In 2022, it also became the first Korean food company to hit $400 million in exports.