Authorities in Mexico ordered a recall of a Buldak, or “fire chicken,” ramen product for misleading customers with its label, despite having “no trace of chicken” in it. The Office of the Federal Prosecutor for the Consumer announced the recall decision Monday there, concerning Buldak Ramen Cheese and 11 other instant noodle products from across nine manufacturers. It targets a total of 129,937...

Convenience store chain Seven Eleven has partnered with a local mobility software startup to use drones for product delivery, the company announced Wednesday. According to Seven Eleven, it will develop systems and infrastructure for delivery drones with Pablo Air, with plans to launch a pilot run later this year. The firm will open a new location outside of the greater Seoul area, possibly in G...

South Korean total energy company GS Caltex said Tuesday it has teamed up with home furnishing retail company Ikea Korea to launch a pickup service at one of its gas stations in Seoul’s Gangnam district, with plans to expand it across the country later this year. The move will cut the delivery fees to 19,000 won. Ikea delivery fees are relatively high because of the size and weight of the furnit...

South Korean instant noodle maker Samyang Foods is opening a branch in China, on the back of the worldwide popularity of its extremely spicy Buldak Ramen. The company said Tuesday the new office will launch in Shanghai in December, following the foundation of Samyang America in August. The China branch will focus on marketing and distribution of its products on the mainland, it said. China and ...

Online shopping in South Korea jumped 16.8 percent on-year in August to 15.8 trillion won ($13.3 billion), the highest transaction amount ever recorded for the month since records began in 2001, data showed Tuesday. According to data from Statistics Korea, food delivery orders set a new record high of 2.4 trillion won, rising from the previous month when the figure stood at around 2.3 trillion wo...

International sales of Nongshim’s spicy Shin Ramyun surpassed local sales for the first time in the third quarter of this year, the South Korean foodmaker said Monday. Sales generated outside of South Korea accounted for 53.6 percent of the product‘s 690 billion won ($600 million) total sales in the first three quarters of the year. This is the first time that more Shin Ramyun was sold overseas ...

Baristas and employees of Starbucks Korea are fuming over excessive workload, after a recent marketing event drew customers lining up for hours. Saying the company has no consideration for the working conditions of its already-overworked staff, the employees said they may stage their first-ever collection action this week. A staffer at the US-based coffee chain, who requested anonymity, confi...

South Korea’s major milk and dairy product providers are set to raise retail prices of their products next week. Namyang Dairy Products said Friday the company will increase retail prices of commercial milk products by an average 4.9 percent from Oct. 14. The firm said the prices of fermented and processed milk products will be risen 0.3 percent and 1.6 percent on average, respectively. For ex...

In a statement posted on the Dunkin’ Donuts’ Korean website, BR Korea said it was investigating hygiene standards at the factory and how well they were observed. “We are internally investigating the matter. The Korea Food & Drug Administration also conducted a spot check of the facility Wednesday morning,” read the statement. It also said it will “come up with internal and external measures” de...

Move to encourage spending causes confusion over where you can use it

Buoyed by the pandemic, video gaming boom sees e-commerce and furniture companies cater to players with deep pockets

Retail sales in South Korea moved up 6.4 percent in August from a year earlier, data showed Wednesday, as people continued to purchase more food and groceries online amid the new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The combined sales of 25 major offline and online retailers reached 12.6 trillion won ($10.6 billion) last month, compared with 11.9 trillion won tallied in the previous year, according to...

BAT Rothmans on Monday launched the new tobacco heating product Glo Pro Slim in South Korea in an online media conference. Glo Pro Slim marks the latest edition of the Glo series, following the launch of Glo Pro early last year. The company said the new product adds to its growing list of Glo products and will appeal to consumers seeking potentially reduced-risk products. “BAT Rothmans will lea...

From virtual shops, promos to staff training, companies rush to have something virtual

Michelin-starred chef Gordon Ramsay will open a Seoul branch of his famed burger restaurant at Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, southern Seoul, this December. The Seoul location will be the first Gordon Ramsay Burger in Asia, and the third branch to open globally. Ramsay rose to stardom as the iconic host of “Hell’s Kitchen,” an American cooking competition show that has aired since 2005. The Briti...