ASEAN’s scrumptious seafood promoted in Korea

The ASEAN-Korea Center organized the ASEAN Trade Fair at Coex and Trade Tower from Wednesday to Friday, introducing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ rich and diverse seafood products and developing business networks between Southeast Asian and Korean seafood companies.

The event occurred as part of the Seoul International Seafood Show 2018, the country’s largest seafood exhibition.

“As (among) the world’s biggest seafood consumers per person, Korea needs to attract more foreign exporters to meet its growing consumer demands,” said the center’s Secretary-General Lee Hyuk. “Korea imports large quantities of seafood from Vietnam and Thailand. I believe that exporters from other ASEAN countries will be able to fulfill the demands of large Korean retailers, who have high customs clearance standards and well-structured supply systems.”

The trade fair helped participating companies from the ASEAN market introduce their competitive products and gain insights into the Korean market, he added.

Twenty-seven companies from Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam took part in the Seoul International Seafood Show, displaying various products made from finfish, shellfish and other processed seafood. Various national booths were set up in cooperation with the Indonesian Embassy in Seoul, Malaysia External Trade Development Corp., the Ministry of Commerce of Myanmar, the Thailand Department of International Trade Promotion and Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency.

Participating company representatives held one-on-one business meetings with their Korean and international counterparts.

As part of the program, a trade facilitation workshop on the Korean seafood market and importation policy took place on May 8 at Trade Tower. The workshop provided the latest information on the Korean business environment to ASEAN business delegates, ranging from food safety and quality assurance to seafood market trends, customs clearance and issues related to free trade agreements.

The ASEAN-Korea Center has been hosting the ASEAN Trade Fair since 2009 with the aim of narrowing the trade balance between the 10 member states of ASEAN and Korea, as well as facilitating the entry of ASEAN products into the Korean market. This year, the intergovernmental institution will host various exhibitions through the Korea International Furniture and Interior Fair in August and September, as well as the Global Game Exhibition in November.

By Joel Lee (joel@heraldcorp.com)