🎬 K-Pop Noodle Effect: Nongshim (Q3 +37% profit) and Samyang (Q3 +87% profit) are riding the K-Pop and K-Drama wave. KPop Demon Hunters sends Shin Ramyun viral, and spicy Buldak challenges are exploding worldwide.
🏠Korea Scales Up: Nongshim is building a dedicated export plant for 500 million servings. Goal: boost Europe from today’s <100 million USD revenue to 300 million USD by 2030. Samyang is betting on AI-powered factories and a new China plant by 2027 with a capacity of 3.9 billion servings.
🔥 Super-Spicy Global: The U.S. and Europe love “K-Spicy,” and Korean brands are rapidly gaining market share. In 2025, K-Food exports hit USD 8.48 billion (+8.9%), including USD 1.13 billion from ramyeon alone (+24.5%).
🇮🇩 Indonesia Joins In: Indomie/Indofood expands across the Middle East & Africa: 12 factories, 550 million consumers. With 14.7 billion servings per year, the country is becoming the world’s number-two noodle superpower.
🇯🇵 Japan Fights Back: Nissin expands in Hungary and pushes premium ramen in China. Tourism drives Japan’s ramen boom, but globally, Korea and Indonesia are now overtaking it in speed and market share.
Big Picture
Asia’s instant noodle market is experiencing its biggest boom in 20 years. The global market is expected to reach USD 56.5 billion by 2030 (+35%). Korean ramyeon is on track for USD 2.24 billion in 2025 and now exports over USD 2 billion to more than 100 countries.
The China Survival Guide for Western Businesses
Entity setup, WeChat strategy, hiring your first local team. 12+ years on the ground in Shanghai.
