K-food takes root in Sweden as 'functional superfood'

K-food has successfully established itself in Sweden, where it is widely regarded as "the most dynamic and healthy alternative." Korean products are now sold at major supermarket chains including ICA, Coop and Axfood, as well as through online shopping platforms.

According to KATI, the agricultural food export information service run by the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation, the most popular products in the Swedish market are ramyun, kimchi and sauces. Both cup and bag ramyun enjoy strong demand as a quick meal and as a staple of spicy food challenges. Kimchi consumption is growing in fusion formats, with Swedes incorporating it into local dishes as a salad substitute or burger topping.

Sales of mandu, tteokbokki, triangle kimbap and frozen kimbap are also rising. Fermented condiments — including soy sauce, gochujang, vinegar gochujang and ssamjang — along with other Korean-style sauces are consistently gaining ground. Gochujang-based sauces in particular are drawing attention as the next-generation global hot sauce to follow sriracha.

ICA, one of Sweden's largest supermarket chains, has created a dedicated Korean food category — "Koreansk mat" — on its official website, featuring more than 60 recipes.

In a gochujang introduction posted this year, ICA presented the condiment not merely as an ingredient for traditional hansik but also as a versatile addition to Western-style dishes familiar to Swedish consumers, such as salmon glaze.

The head of K, a Korean food importer in Sweden, told KOTRA that fermented products such as kimchi and jang-based condiments "have emerged as functional superfoods, aligning with the Swedish Food Agency's health-oriented guidelines." The executive added that vegan kimchi made without salted seafood, clean-label products free of artificial additives and gluten-free ramyun "have precisely targeted Swedish consumers."