Browse Data and Analysis

E-commerce is one of the largest retail channels and an essential component of the overall consumer market in Korea. Food related online sales in 2023 including food, agricultural products, and food delivery services was once again the largest category, occupying about 30 percent of the total online sales for three consecutive years.

Korea’s marketing year (MY) 2024/25 citrus production is forecast down 2.6 percent to 565,000 MT, a 10-year low, on gradually declining acreage and adverse weather conditions. Jeju Island, where nearly all Korean citrus is grown, experienced a prolonged summer heat wave lasting into mid-September, followed by excessive fall rain, which caused fruit cracking and rot.

Korea depends heavily on imports to meet the demand for dried fruits, though overall demand has seen a slight decrease over the last five years. In 2023, the United States held roughly 53% of the market share for imported dried fruit.

In 2022 (the latest official data available), South Korea's sales in the HRI food service sector reached 177.12 trillion KRW (137.1 billion USD), a 17.48 percent increase from 2021, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. In 2023, monthly per capita spending on the HRI food service rose to 179,648 KRW (139.1 USD), up 10.66 percent from 2022 and 30.65 percent from 2021.

In 2023, the United States held a 29.1 percent share of the consumer-oriented food and beverage market in Honduras, a slight decrease of 1.3 percent from 2022.

In September 2024, a National Assembly member submitted a draft revision of the Act on Transboundary Movements of Living Modified Organisms, commonly referred to as the LMO Act.

Korea’s wine import sector has been undergoing a stabilizing phase since the explosive growth around 2021. In 2023, wine imports reached 506 million USD, down 12.9 percent from the previous year, totaling 56.5 million kg, a decrease of 20.4 percent compared to 2022.

Korea’s fresh pear production is projected to rise by 10.2 percent to 202,000 metric tons (MT) in marketing year (MY) 2024/25, helped by favorable weather and lower incidences of diseases and pests compared to the previous year.

Market share of U.S. corn in South Korea is expected to remain strong in MY 2024/25 after rebounding to 20 percent in MY 2023/24. Domestic rice production continues its slow decline as the government incentivizes farmers to switch to planting alternate crops.

Honduras has made no modifications to its existing regulatory framework regarding genetically engineered (GE) crops. As of October 2024, planted area of GE corn in Honduras has increased by 29 percent from the previous year, rising from 52,000 to 67,000 hectares. In 2024, the National Committee on Biotechnology and Biosecurity approved six events.

Korean seafood imports totaled $5.93 billion in 2023, down 8.3 percent from 2022. Korean 2023 seafood imports from the United States totaled $203 million, a decrease of 11.4 percent year-to-year.

The National Plant, Animal Health and Food Safety Service (SENASA) is the regulatory agency in Honduras that is responsible for the inspection of all agricultural products that enter the country.