I think all of you foreign friends in Korea know that there are many different types of Korean snacks, right? What snacks do you usually buy and eat? Also, when you think of the most famous Korean snacks, what snacks come to mind?
I think you can find Korea's 'Orion Choco Pie' when you visit supermarkets around the world. Orion is a Korean confectionery company, but Orion Choco Pie is a product from Orion Co., Ltd. and is famous around the world. Are you curious why foreigners love Orion Choco Pie so much? This time, I would like to introduce you to Orion Co., Ltd. and Orion Choco Pie.
introduction
Orion Co., Ltd. is a South Korean confectionery company founded in 1956. Orion is an affiliate of Orion Holdings and is famous for Orion Choco Pie. Orion is taking a leap forward as a global food and healthcare company through its confectionery, beverage, convenience food, and bio businesses.
Source: Orion (orionworld.com)
Orion Choco Pie is a confectionery made with chocolate cake and marshmallows that Orion first launched in 1974. Orion Choco Pie is popular not only in Korea but also in China, Vietnam, Russia, and India, and approximately 10 billion pieces are sold every year. Orion Choco Pie is known as the original Choco Pie, and boasts differentiated taste and quality from other companies' Choco Pies. Orion Choco Pie is sold in 1170g (1 piece) packs of 30, priced at approximately 7,160 won.
The history of Orion Choco Pie
Orion Choco Pie is a confectionery first launched in Korea in 1974. Kim Yong-chan, head of Orion's snack development team, tried chocolate-covered snacks at a hotel cafe while on a business trip to the U.S. and began developing similar snacks. As a result of a year of experimentation, a moist Choco Pie was created by combining hard biscuits with marshmallows.
Source: North Korea's 'Bongdong Snacks', a replacement for Kaesong Industrial Complex's Choco Pie? - YouTube
Orion Choco Pie is popular not only in Korea but also in China, Vietnam, and Russia. In Russia, it is called the ‘national pie’ and 600 million pieces were sold in 2016. In North Korea, it was used as a snack at the Kaesong Industrial Complex and was distributed for $10 at night markets.
Orion Choco Pie changed its name to ‘Choco Pie Jeong’ in 1995. 'Jeong' is a Chinese character meaning love and sincerity, and is intended to express Orion's gratitude and affection for its customers. In 2016, 41 years after the birth of Choco Pie, ‘Choco Pie Jeong Banana’ was launched.
Reason for popularity
Orion Choco Pie was created by Kim Yong-chan, Orion's confectionery development team leader, who tried chocolate-covered confectionery at a hotel cafe while on a business trip to the U.S. and began developing similar confections. As a result of a year of experimentation, a moist Choco Pie was created by combining hard biscuits with marshmallows. Orion Choco Pie is a confectionery made with chocolate cake and marshmallows that was first launched in Korea and is known as the original Choco Pie. Orion Choco Pie boasts differentiated taste and quality, and unlike other companies' Choco Pies, it uses the Chinese character 'Jeong' on the product packaging and is developing a brand concept that symbolizes love and sincerity. The history and spirit of Orion Choco Pie must have captured the hearts of many consumers.
Orion Choco Pie is popular not only in Korea but also in China, Vietnam, and Russia. Orion develops new flavors of Choco Pie every year tailored to the characteristics of consumers and markets in each country, and a total of 26 types of Choco Pie are currently sold in over 60 countries around the world. We are targeting the younger generation by introducing products using jam, such as strawberry flavors in China, peach and yogurt flavors in Vietnam, and cherry and raspberry flavors in Russia. In this way, Orion Choco Pie offers a variety of flavors and choices, and is competitive in the global market.
Orion Choco Pie is a popular product with 2 billion units sold annually. This means that if you line up all the Choco Pies sold last year, it would be enough to circle the Earth 5 times. Like this, Orion Choco Pie is a snack loved by many people and is good to eat as a snack or give or receive as a gift. In particular, as interest in Korean culture increases due to the popularity of the Netflix drama 'Squid Game', 'K-snacks' are also receiving a lot of attention. Orion Choco Pie is gaining popularity in overseas markets thanks to the Korean Wave.
