German retail giant Aldi sparks controversy after labeling kimchi as Japanese

German retail giant ALDI has sparked controversy after labeling kimchi as “Japanese kimchi” in the recipe section of its official website. This came two years after the company drew backlash for labeling its store brand kimchi as “Chinese kimchi.”

Kimchi is introduced as "Japanese kimchi" in the recipe section of the website of Aldi, a major German supermarket chain. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

German retail giant Aldi has sparked controversy after labeling kimchi as “Japanese kimchi” in the recipe section of its official website. This came two years after the company also drew backlash for labeling its store brand kimchi product as “Chinese kimchi.”

Professor Seo Kyoung-duk of Sungshin Women’s University said on his social media account on Oct. 17, “Recently, many Koreans residing in Germany reported this issue. Upon checking, I found that Aldi introduced a kimchi recipe on its website and labeled it as ‘Japanisches Kimchi’ [Japanese kimchi].”

He added, “Aldi is a massive supermarket group representing the German retail market, with annual sales exceeding 45 trillion won [$32 billion]. It operates not only in Germany but also in other European countries including France, Spain and Denmark.”

Two years ago, Aldi stirred similar controversy by labeling its kimchi product with phrases suggesting Chinese origin — using “Original aus China” (German for “originally from China”) and “Originale dalla Cina” (Italian for the same). Following complaints from Koreans, the company removed the wording from the product.

Professor Seo stated, “Koreans living in Germany continue to send protest emails,” and emphasized, “If this situation continues, Europeans may mistakenly come to believe that kimchi is a Chinese or Japanese food. It is therefore crucial that Aldi corrects the labeling to reflect the proper origin of kimchi.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY JANG GU-SEUL [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]