Sejong, 6 February 2024 — The booth for Korean food promotion in the square of Gangneung Olympic Park was a great success. The booth was opened from 19 January to 1 February 2024 by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korean Food Promotion Institute through collaboration with the Fourth Winter Youth Olympic Games.
The ministry opened the space to present a wide range of charms of Korean food culture to the Olympic athletes (approximately 1,900 people) and spectators. It displayed promotional videos and books with themes of fermented foods and temple cuisine, and provided a hands-on program for visitors to try their hands at making Korean teas and confectionery.
Approximately 7,000 people visited the booth, including Korean and non-Korean spectators, as well as the agriculture minister, the culture minister, the Governor of Gangwon Province, the chairman of BBQ, and officials of the government and the Olympic event. The visitors showed an enthusiastic response and interest while experiencing Korean food culture, including the tasting of colorful traditional Korean confections.
Japanese figure skater Haru Kakiuchi who visited the booth said: “Korean food is very colorful, and remarkable care and effort going into the making catch my eyes. It was such a delight to experience the traditional food culture of Korea.”
“The Winter Youth Olympic Games in the province of Gangwon has served as a wonderful opportunity for Korean food to be perceived positively by international youth interested in K-contents,” said the Director General of the Food Industry Policy Bureau of the Ministry.
