By Kwak Yeon-soo

Cho Kyung-rim, 23, is a pescetarian, who does not eat meat but consumes fish and seafood.

An animal enthusiast, Cho became a vegetarian after becoming aware of factory farming of animals.

In 2016, she created a vegetarian club called “Solchan” at Ewha Womans University as a sophomore.

“People think a vegan diet is unhealthy because it leads to a lack of important nutrients, but that’s not true,” she said.

“There are a lot of alternative options to replace meat products, and many restaurants are more than willing to accommodate vegan requests nowadays.”

Like Cho, millennials in Korea have high demand for vegan food, whether for reasons of health, environment or simply a desire to eat less meat. And this trend is fostering a growing number of vegetarians and vegans in Korea.

According to Korea Vegetarian Union, 1 to 1.5 million Korean consumers, or about two to three percent of the population, are estimated to be vegetarians, which is more than 10 times compared to 150,000 in 2008.

About 500,000 are estimated to be strict vegans, and the number of vegan restaurants has more than doubled from 150 in 2010 to 350 in 2018.

“The group of people that want to have a vegan-based diet is growing, and for different reasons,” Moon Jung-hoon, a professor at the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development of Seoul National University, said. “The younger generation has so-called food curiosity that makes them want to try vegan products.”

With the new trend, it’s no wonder brands are jumping to launch vegan products.

Dongwon F&B was one of the first culinary businesses to supply plant-based meat brand Beyond Meat products in Korea.

About 10,000 packages of Beyond Meat plant-based patties were sold in just a month after being introduced to Korean consumers last month.

“The brand has been well received in the marketplace given that it offers specially targeted products and are sold online,” a Dongwon F&B official said.

“We expect the sales of Beyond Meat products in Korea will increase more rapidly when they are sold at large discount stores from this month.”

Headquartered in California, Beyond Meat is a company that produces 100 percent plant-based meat using protein extracted from beans, mushrooms, and zucchinis.

The plant-based patty similar taste and texture compared with beef patty and is used to cook vegan burgers.

Online malls such as Dongwon Mall and Gmarket started offering Beyond Meat’s plant-based meat products as well as four vegan restaurants.

“I wouldn’t be able to tell if it’s real meat or not if I was on a blind test. I can’t believe there’s no butter,” a consumer who has tried Beyond Meat said.

According to Eleven Street research, sales of plant-based meats jumped 17 percent between 2017 and 2018, sales of vegetable seasoning rose 8 percent and sales vegetarian ramen increased 11 percent in 2018.