On November 26, 2024, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) of the Republic of Korea announced that at present, 101 products produced by 15 food companies in South Korea use QR codes to mark food safety and other information, including Nongshim, Daesang, Lotte, Maeil, Shinsegae, CJ, OTTOGI, Orion and other food companies, and their products involve instant noodles, dumplings, snacks, drinks and so on. Meanwhile, South Korea plans to expand the range of products that use QR codes to label food information to imported food in 2025, and to expand the range of products to all domestic food products such as agricultural products, livestock products, and aquatic products in 2026.

In recent years, South Korea's food and drug Ministry has vigorously promoted the use of QR codes to label food information. In the past, consumers used the information printed on the packaging label to confirm product information such as raw materials and shelf life (consumption period), but it was difficult to find the necessary information due to the limited amount of content contained in the packaging area of food.

In order to improve this situation, the Ministry of Food and Drug of Korea has been promoting a demonstration project of food two-dimensional code (QR) labeling since September 2022, which allows consumers to check product information in real time, including nutritional information and cooking methods, by pointing a mobile phone camera at the food two-dimensional code (QR) labeled on the product. By reading food information through two-dimensional code, the elderly can greatly expand the font size of food labeling information, the hearing impaired can convert images through the Internet, and the visually impaired can obtain food labeling information through mobile applications such as transforming Braille.

In order to improve the readability of the food labeling items * that are necessary for the safety and product choice of consumers in the food labeling items on product packaging materials, the Ministry of Food and Drug of Korea stipulates that other labeling items can be provided through the QR code except for the necessary labeling items.

* Labeling matters necessary for consumer safety and product selection: product name, net content (heat), enterprise name, consumption period (circulation period), storage method, precautions, sodium content comparison.

** Other labeling items: including raw material name, nutritional composition, enterprise location, product declaration number, etc.

Through this project, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) of the Republic of Korea hopes to improve the readability of product labeling information, expand the scope of information provided, protect consumers' right to know, and reduce the cost of changing packaging paper by changing food labeling items. At the same time, it promotes the minimization of wrapping paper waste, protects the environment and contributes to carbon neutrality. Through the information indicated by the two-dimensional code, it is not necessary to change the packaging materials when changing the marking items.

The above is a brief introduction to the Korean food QR Code labeling demonstration project. Food partner network reminds enterprises that plan to produce and export processed food to South Korea, to refer to the Korean food labeling requirements and update changes for food safety management, timely attention to the progress of the Korean food two-dimensional code labeling project, next year according to the company's own product situation according to relevant regulations and standards to the Korean official application for the use of food two-dimensional code labeling product information, Reduce the cost consumption of product packaging materials, reduce the loss caused by the non-compliance of products exported to Korea due to unqualified labels.