European imports of Korean chicken products grew more than eightfold in the first half of 2026 compared with a year earlier. The starting base was small, but the growth signals a shift in how Korean chicken products are entering the European market.
Korean chicken export value to the EU and UK rose from approximately $630,000 in the first half of 2025 to $5.2 million in the first half of 2026. The rapid growth highlights new opportunities for Korean frozen chicken products in European retail.
Korean chicken is increasingly exported in frozen retail formats, including dakgangjeong. Unlike restaurant-focused products, retail-ready formats are designed for supermarket distribution, with requirements for consumer packaging, shelf life, inventory planning and replenishment.
Maniker F&G shipped its first frozen chicken products, including dakgangjeong, to the UK from its Yongin facility in June 2026. This demonstrates how manufacturers can expand from traditional foodservice products into retail-ready frozen formats for international markets.
Yes. In its September 3 announcement, MAFRA outlined plans for a record 89 Korean companies to participate in SIAL Paris 2026, held from October 17 to 21, and to strengthen promotion of heat-treated poultry products such as dakgangjeong and chicken dumplings. This initiative was intended to raise the category’s visibility among European buyers.
Korean fried chicken is becoming something a buyer can list rather than only something a guest orders. The sourcing question moves from menu interest to supply reality: frozen capacity, EU compliance, and consistent format across frozen lines.
Korean fried chicken pieces coated in a sweet-and-spicy glaze, traditionally served hot but now produced in frozen retail formats for export.
Increasingly. Frozen retail formats are the entry route, and the first UK shipments of frozen dakgangjeong went out in 2026.
Frozen retail formats have recently expanded Korea’s chicken export opportunities in Europe, building on earlier exports of products such as samgyetang.
