Craft Brewing Ingredient Buyers Trade Mission to the 2022 Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America (Minneapolis, MN - May 2022)

ATO Seoul hosted a delegation of Korean brewers to the Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America in Minneapolis, MN held in May 2022 to help U.S. suppliers expand exports to South Korea. The delegation consisted of two importers, six brewers, and four people from the beer industry. The program educated Korean brewers about the quality, value, and diversity of American brewing ingredients through field trips and meetings with local American breweries. The activity generated over 118 serious business contacts between Korean buyers and American suppliers.  The activity generated $1,007,962 sales of U.S. hop pellets and hop extracts. It is expected to generate an additional $242,181 in sales of U.S. hops, craft puree, fruit concentrate, yeast, and malt.

Korean Seafood Trade Mission to Seafood Expo Global 2022 Leads to $5.5 million in Potential Export Sales

ATO Seoul brought five Korean seafood importers to the Seafood Expo Global (SEG) held in Barcelona, Spain, April 26-28, 2022. This trade mission introduced the Korean importers to American seafood products and suppliers at SEG. The trade mission resulted in several contracts for U.S. seafood signed on the spot as well as an estimated $5.5 million in potential purchases from U.S. seafood suppliers over the next 12 months. Korea imported $217 million of U.S. seafood products in 2021. Korea is the United States fourth largest seafood export market.

Great American Craft Beer Showcase at KIBEX 2022 (March 31-April 2, 2022)

ATO Seoul in a partnership with the Brewers Association (BA) organized the 'Great American Craft Beer Showcase' at the Korea International Beer Expo (KIBEX) on March 31-April 2, 2022. A total of 22 breweries participated in the activity, showcasing the quality, value, and diversity that the U.S. craft beer industry has to offer. COVID 19 prevented U.S. brewery representatives from traveling. Twenty breweries were represented by eight Korean importer partners in the activity. ATO Seoul represented the two remaining breweries at the show, meeting with potential Korean importers and pouring samples to consumer visitors on their behalf. ATO Seoul identified nine Korean importers during the activity who expressed serious interest in importing new U.S. craft beer.