Graduate student Park, 31, was taken aback during a recent visit to Seoul’s trendy Seongsu-dong neighborhood. The price of bungeo-ppang, a popular winter street snack, has surged two-to-three-fold. Originating from the Japanese taiyaki, bungeo-ppang is a fish-shaped pastry stuffed with sweetened red bean paste or custard.
A few years ago, the beloved winter snack was available at three for 1,000 won ($0.72). These days, customers are lucky if they can find a place that sells one bungeo-ppang for 2,000 won.
“Some places charge 2,000 won for just one, and cream-filled ones cost up to 2,500 won,” said Park. “I’m thinking of making bungeo-ppang with home meal replacement (HMR) products instead.”
The rising cost of ingredients such as red beans, flour, and cooking oil, coupled with increasing LPG prices for baking, has driven up the price of winter street snacks. The average cost of red beans reached 264,200 won per 40 kilograms in January, up 10% from last year, according to the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation on Dec. 1
With inflation pushing up the prices of popular winter street snacks, the food industry has been releasing HMR versions of bungeo-ppang. Priced between 8,000 and 10,000 won, with about 20 pieces per bag, the cost per piece ranges from 500 to 600 won, a more affordable and convenient option for consumers.
Shinsegae Food, CJ CheilJedang, and Ottogi have all launched HMR bungeo-ppang products in the past two years. CJ CheilJedang said its Bibigo bungeo-ppang products generated over 1 billion won ($716,075) in monthly sales during the winter season last year. Ottogi’s frozen bungeo-ppang products also reached cumulative sales of 3 billion won last winter.
As inflation continues to pinch budgets, frozen bungeo-ppang and other HMR options are becoming the go-to choice for nostalgic comfort food without the premium street price. “The trend of enjoying street snacks at home is likely to persist in this era of high prices,” said an industry insider.
