Cup Noodles, Saewookkang, and Donuts All Face Price Hikes Amid Rising Food Costs

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Price hikes are continuing for everyday food items like ramen, snacks, and bread. Companies maintain that they have reached their limits as high oil prices and a strong exchange rate have driven up the costs of raw materials and packaging. Consequently, consumers are expected to face an even heavier burden on their grocery bills.

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Nongshim has announced that it will raise the factory prices of 43 product groups, including major bowl-type ramen, snacks, and beverages, by an average of 5.8% starting from the 1st of next month.

At the retail level, Saewookkang and Yukgaejang Cup Noodle are expected to increase by 100 won each, bringing their prices to 1,600 won and 1,200 won, respectively.

This marks the first price increase for Saewookkang, the top-selling product in the domestic snack market, in 3 years and 11 months.

Nongshim explained that price adjustments were inevitable due to the burden of soaring costs, while noting that packet ramen products like Shin Ramyun were excluded from the price hikes.

[Nongshim Employee: Due to the aftermath of high exchange rates and high oil prices, the costs of materials such as packaging have surged, intensifying the burden of production costs. Domestic profitability has deteriorated further due to increases in supplier delivery prices driven by recent tensions in the Middle East.]

Citing rising costs, Dunkin will raise the prices of 39 types of donuts by an average of 6.5% starting from the 2nd of next month, and Tous les Jours will increase the retail prices of its bread and cakes starting from the end of this month.

Previously, CJ CheilJedang also raised the prices of major items such as Hetbahn, dumplings, and grilled fish by an average of 8%, while Lotte Chilsung Beverage and Ottogi also increased prices across major product groups.

The inflation rate for consumer goods surpassed 3% for two consecutive months.

With dining-out costs also skyrocketing, the continuous rise in grocery prices means consumers are inevitably feeling an even heavier burden.

[Lee Dong-hyun / Yangcheon-gu, Seoul: I definitely feel it a lot. I always buy the exact same items, but every time I come, the prices keep going up...]

The government announced that it will expand the supply of items like eggs and mackerel to stabilize dining-table prices, and host the largest-scale discount events targeting all categories of agricultural, livestock, and fishery products.

(Video Editing: Park Ji-in, Design: Seo Seung-hyun, VJ: Jung Han-wook)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.