Jelly candies are seeing increasing popularity among South Koreans, rising as an alternative for traditionally preferred hard candy and chewing gum, industry data showed Tuesday.

According to a local confectionary company Orion, which sells steady-selling gummy sweets such as Mygumi, Jelly Worms and Jelly Bob, saw its sales of jelly candies jump by 65.4 percent over the past five years. 

In March alone, which is considered peak season for confectionary firms since couples exchange gifts and sweets on March 14, or White Day, the company raked 5 billion won ($4.6 million) in sales of jelly candies.

The domestic jelly candy market is valued at 184 billion won as of last year, according to Nielson Korea. The market saw gradual growth from 69 billion won in 2014 to 119 billion won in 2015, 163 billion won in 2016.

Industry insiders expect the market will grow to 200 billion won by year-end, buoyed by popularity of chewable sweets among adults as well. 

“The growth of the jelly product market comes after jelly candies gained popularity among women in 20s and 30s as dessert. Adults can casually enjoy them after a meal or during work, relatively easier to consume to compare to chewing gums,” said an official from Orion. 

Orion said it would soon launch stick jelly products and jelly drinks in pouches in accordance with increasing consumer demand.

Other confectioners also reported a shifting consumer trend toward jelly candies. 

Lotte Confectionary, which tops the market in terms of sales of chewing gum here, said the variety of jelly products made it easier to boost sales. 

According to Lotte’s quarterly report, the combined domestic sales and exports of candy and chewing gums inched up from 67 billion won in the fourth quarter last year to 68 billion won in the first quarter this year. The volume of sales, however, went down from 4,853 tons to 4,586 tons over the same period. 

“Since the general confectionary market is going through tough times in terms of sales, it is still early to say that jelly products will substitute candies and chewing gums,” a Lotte Confectionary official said. 

By Kim Da-sol (ddd@heraldcorp.com)