How often is Korean food eaten globally? 1.7 times a month on average, survey finds

People outside Korea consume Korean food 1.7 times a month on average, a Korean Food Promotion Institute (KFPI) survey revealed on Tuesday.

Naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles) and banchan (side dishes) from the newly opened Korean restaurant, Na Oh, in Singapore's Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center. [YONHAP]

People outside Korea consume Korean food 1.7 times a month on average, a Korean Food Promotion Institute (KFPI) survey revealed on Tuesday.

KFPI surveyed 9,000 people between the ages of 20 and 59 in 16 countries from August to October 2023 to examine Korean food consumer responses by continent. Oceania, Latin America and the Middle East are grouped into one, and Asia is divided into Southeast and Northeast Asia.

Sixty-five percent of the participants answered that they had visited a Korean restaurant within the past year.

Southeast Asia most often consumed Korean food, averaging 2.2 times a month, followed by 1.7 times in Northeast Asia, 1.5 times in Oceania, Latin America, and the Middle East, 1.4 times in North America and 1.2 times in Europe.

Southeast Asians also had the highest accessibility to Korean restaurants, with 79.7 percent of the participants answering they could "easily access" Korean restaurants. Oceania, Latin America and Middle East participants had the least accessibility, with 58.7 percent of the participants answering they could easily visit a Korean restaurant.

Forty-nine percent of the participants answered that they visited a Korean restaurant for an everyday meal. The number shows a 2.8 percent on-year increase from KFPI's 2022 survey. A total of 41.5 percent answered that they visited a Korean restaurant for a casual, private meeting and 9.4 percent said they went for a formal meeting.

Eighty-seven percent said that they were willing to revisit a Korean restaurant.

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]