SEOUL -- South Koreans chose "Saeukkang," shrimp crackers made by major food company Nongshim, as their favorite snack in 2022, market data showed. The shrimp cracker that was first released in the early 1970s has captured all age groups through generations.
Saeukkang first hit the domestic market in 1971 when most of the mass-produced South Korean snacks were low-quality and based on traditional snacks that have bland flavors. The shrimp crackers were inspired by the popular Japanese snack "Kappa Ebisen," made by Calbee. Saeukkang garnered extreme popularity after its release and became one of South Korea's iconic snacks.
The shrimp snack was originally released as a shrimp-flavored cracker product, but half a dozen other variant types of Saeukkang were released to target different consumer groups and boost popularity through limited-time events. Saeukkang now can be found on the shelves of supermarkets in at least 76 countries around the world.
According to data released by the Korean Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation (aT), a state-operated public company, Nongshim's Saeukkang was ranked at No. 1 in South Korea's snack product market in 2022 with a 7.01 percent market share. The data showed that about 133.3 billion won ($98.6 million) worth of Saeukkang was sold through retailers.
Poca Chip, sweet and salty potato chips made by food company Orion, was the country's second-most popular snack with sales of 92.1 billion won, followed by Pringles by Nongshim Kellogg (86.1 billion won) and Lotte Kkokkalcorn (83.9 billion won), a cone-shaped corn crackers made by Lotte Wellfood. Both Poca Chip and Kkokkalcorn have some dozen variants designed to attract more customers.
