Korea exported US$32 million worth of makgeolli, a traditional rice wine, to Japan in 2012, down 33.9 percent from the previous year, the corporation said.
Consumption of makgeolli dwindled in Japan as the popularity of non-alcoholic beverages increased among women in their 20s and 30s, officials at the corporation said.
Exports of ramen (instant noodle) to Japan declined 18.7 percent over the cited period, while exports of samgetang (a broth of chicken and ginseng), gochujang (red pepper paste) and kimchi fell 14.4 percent, 5.1 percent and 2.6 percent,respectively.
Kimchi was not as popular as before as anti-Korean sentiment spread and Enteropathogenic Escherichia Coli O-157 was found in cabbages, the officials said.
By Ayaka Erin Tobari
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com