150,000 Traditional Haneulcheong Sikhye products to be exported to U.S., China and Vietnam

◇ Rice punch developed by the Gyeongggi-do Agricultural Research & Extension Services will be exported to three countries. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News

A rice punch product produced in Gyeonggi Province by modernizing a traditional Korean drink known as sikhye will be exported to the U.S., China and Vietnam. 

The Gyeongggi-do Agricultural Research & Extension Services (GARES) announced on February 4 that 150,000 units of Traditional Haneulcheong Sikhye made with Gyeonggi rice will be exported to the U.S., China and Vietnam (50,000 units to each country) in mid-February.

Traditional Haneulcheong Sikhye is a product that succeeded in mass production after the transfer of the production technology for rice punch from GARES to Sejun Haneulcheong in 2012. Starting with 150,000 units this month, 300,000 units will be exported to the three countries (100,000 to each country) each month from March.

The exported rice punch will be sold at large discount retailers like H Mart in the U.S., discount retailers located in Beijing and Xiamen of Fujian in China, and convenience stores like Circle K and Family Mart in Vietnam.

GARES had already begun developing a new product to overcome the weaknesses of traditional sikhye back in 2012. They had succeeded in developing a rice punch containing more than twice the amount of amino acid as that of the previous sikhye and eliminating grains of rice disliked by youths.

GARES implemented a method for steaming rice using high pressure, doubling the content of amino acid. It also added banana extract to impart banana color and flavor for teens.

“Sikhye made in the traditional method is safer than carbonated drinks for youths but lacks nutrition, and the grains of rice remaining after you finish drinking are not visually appealing,” said an official from GARES’s Agrifood Processing Team. “We added a variety of ingredients rich in nutrition and good for health in order to overcome these shortcomings, and finally succeeded in developing a new beverage by changing its production method to include rice powder.”

Developed by GARES, 125ml of the rice punch contains 87 mg of amino acid (one of the protein components of the human body), which is 3.6 times greater than the 24 mg of regular sikhye products available on the market.

GARES explained that there are 14 mg of essential amino acids that must be consumed with food as they cannot be synthesized within the body, and this amount is 2.8 times greater than the 5 mg of products currently on the market.

“We will continue to support technologies for rice beverages and monitor the products to maintain consistent quality,” said Lim Jae-wook, President of GARES. “We will help promote the consumption of Gyeonggi rice by developing various processed rice goods that satisfy changing consumer tastes.”

The seller, Sejun Haneulcheong, is also promoting ways to supply these Haneulcheong Sikhye products as part of student school lunches when school resumes. The packs for school lunch are reduced in size from 200 ml to 125 ml to eliminate waste.

ⓒGyeonggi G-News | Lim Se-jin yh48635@nate.com 

http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201402041043197055C052&s_code=C052