Global annual consumption reaches 112.2 billion servings
Considering the population, this means that each person ate about 14 pieces.
Guardian “Consumption of instant ramen increases due to difficult living conditions”
India, which does not eat noodles, rapidly increases in consumption, ranking 3rd in the world
Instant ramen has taken over the tables of people around the world. Last year, the world consumed 112.2 billion servings of ramen. Considering that the world’s population is over 8 billion, that’s about 14 per person.
However, the background to the increase in ramen consumption is sad. Due to the global recession, ramen sales are increasing even in countries that did not have a so-called ‘noodle culture’.
On the 20th (local time), the British Guardian reported, “The high cost of living is increasing the consumption of instant ramen.” According to the World Ramen Association, headquartered in Osaka, Japan, instant ramen consumption alone reached 112.2 billion servings in 50 countries around the world last year.
China (including Hong Kong) and Indonesia, which have a long tradition of eating noodles, ranked 1st and 2nd in the world, while Vietnam and Japan ranked 4th and 5th. This is a country where everyone loves noodle dishes. However, India, which ranked third, did not have a culture of eating noodles or noodle dishes.
The Guardian analyzed that the coronavirus pandemic and economic recession were one of the reasons for the increase in ramen consumption. In fact, due to the pandemic, consumption in Mexico surged by 20% last year, following 17.2% in 2021.
Nissin, a Japanese food company, explained, “Even middle-class consumers who did not eat ramen often are now including ramen in their daily lives.”
Toyosuisan, Nissin’s competitor in Japan, plans to build additional factories in the United States and Mexico by 2025 to expand ramen production.
Toyosuisan said, “The number of consumers who eat instant noodles regularly is increasing, and we will further expand the range of ramen types in the future.” Nissin also plans to invest $228 million to expand its factory in the United States.
Due to the popularity of instant ramen, 1,000 new types of ramen are being released every year in Japan, and the price of instant ramen alone has increased by about 20%, which is unusual in the food industry where prices have been stagnant over the past two years.
Korean ramen exports also surge…global exports likely to exceed 2 trillion won
Exports of Korean ramen, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, also exceeded 1 trillion won for the first time in history.
Considering that ramen companies such as Nongshim and Paldo produce in foreign factories and sell directly locally, global exports are estimated to exceed 2 trillion won.
According to the Korea Customs Service’s trade statistics on the 20th, ramen exports from January to October this year amounted to $785.25 million, a 24.7% increase compared to the same period last year. In just 10 months of this year, it has already surpassed last year’s $765.41 million, which was the previous annual maximum.
A Nongshim official explained, “Last year, the amount of ramen sold through factories in the U.S. and China alone was around KRW 900 billion, and if we include the domestic exports, it would be around KRW 1 trillion.” He added, “In fact, the scale of domestic ramen exports is estimated to be around KRW 2 trillion.” did.
Nongshim produces ramen at its factories in the United States and China and sells it directly there. Paldo, which became a hit with its ‘Lunchbox’ ramen, has a separate factory in Russia.
Tags: world struggling ramen .. eat year
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