South Korea to Strengthen Inspections of Foods Purchased via CBEC

On February 21, 2025, the South Korea Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) announced plans to intensify inspections of overseas foods purchased directly through online shopping platforms (hereafter referred to as overseas direct purchase foods) in response to the growing importation of these items. This initiative is part of the 2025 Overseas Direct Purchase Food Safety Management Plan, aimed at preventing consumers from potentially hazardous overseas products.

Key Actions in the 2025 Plan:

Doubling the Inspection Targets Based on Risk

MFDS will analyze customs clearance data to identify high-risk products or those with high consumer interest based on age, gender, country of origin, and seasonal trends. The authority will increase the number of inspected cases to twice the current level, from 3400 in the year 2024 to 6000 in the year 2025.

Expanding Inspections on Suspected Narcotics-Containing Products

Starting this year, the MFDS will conduct annual inspections on overseas direct purchase foods suspected of containing narcotics or other illegal substances. Continuous monitoring of new synthetic chemicals and illegal substances will be carried out to identify harmful ingredients in food products.

Strengthening Collaboration to Block Hazardous Imports

The MFDS will collaborate with the Customs Service and the Communications Standards Commission to block the entry and sale of hazardous food products. Officials will be stationed at entry ports to block these products before they are imported.

Enhancing Consumer Education and Public Awareness

To ensure consumers' right to know and encourage informed purchasing decisions, the MFDS will implement tailored educational programs for different target groups and collaborate with local governments to raise public awareness.

ChemLinked Comments

In South Korea, the market for overseas direct purchase foods continues to grow due to their available varieties and competitive prices. Data shows that the import volume of these products increased from 17.7 million units in 2020 to 24.93 million units in 2024, with the import value rising from 1.1 trillion KRW in 2020 to 1.5 trillion KRW in 2023.

Since overseas direct purchase foods are classified as private goods, their import inspections are less stringent compared to those of foods imported through general trade. As a result, these food products are at higher risk of containing harmful substances. To address this, the MFDS amended the Enforcement Rule of the Imported Food Act on June 9, 2023, specifying the designation of prohibited ingredients in overseas direct purchase foods. So far, nearly 300 ingredients have been officially prohibited. The list of prohibited ingredients in overseas direct purchase foods is available on the Food Safety Korea website.

Overseas enterprises selling foods to South Korea via online shopping platforms must ensure that their products do not contain prohibited ingredients to avoid non-compliance and entry bans. 

Guide of overseas direct purchase foods on the Food safety Korea website

The list of prohibited ingredients in overseas direct purchase foods