For the first time in its history, Samyang Foods has outperformed industry giant Nongshim in operating profit, thanks to its globally popular ultra-spicy Buldak noodles.
In 2024, Samyang Foods reported an operating profit of 344.2 billion won ($236.8 million), more than double the previous year’s figure and the highest since the company’s founding.
This marks a dramatic shift in South Korea’s instant noodle market, where Nongshim -- best known for Shin Ramyun, the country’s top-selling ramyeon since 1981 -- had long been the dominant player. Nongshim’s operating profit for the same period dropped 23.1 percent to 163.1 billion won, less than half of Samyang’s.
Samyang Foods credited its success to the explosive popularity of Buldak ramyeon overseas, particularly in the US and Europe. "The ever-growing global demand for Buldak has driven our best performance yet. With our second plant in Miryang set to begin operations in June, we expect to accelerate international expansion even further,” said an official from Samyang.
The company’s aggressive push into overseas markets, fueled by viral social media trends and spicy food challenges, has reshaped the competition. Just a year earlier, in 2023, Nongshim was still ahead in profitability, earning 212 billion won compared to Samyang’s 146.8 billion won.
But in early 2024, Samyang pulled ahead, posting a first-quarter operating profit of 80.1 billion won to Nongshim’s 61.4 billion won -- a historic first since South Korea’s electronic financial disclosures began in 1998.
Despite losing the profit race, Nongshim remains South Korea’s ramyeon sales leader, generating 3.44 trillion won in 2024 revenue, nearly double Samyang’s 1.73 trillion won. However, Samyang’s surging profitability has driven its market capitalization to 6.2 trillion won, nearly triple Nongshim’s 2.1 trillion won.
mjh@heraldcorp.com
