Korean sweet potatoes are 'exorbitantly priced', but women still buy them to eat instead of meals

Although it looks no different from Vietnamese sweet potatoes, Korean sweet potatoes are still bought by women to bake, steam or fry to eat as a meal replacement, even though the price is up to 360,000 - 420,000 VND/kg.

After the Japanese sweet potato fever in early 2017, when 1kg cost half a million VND, for more than 2 months now, women have been crazy about sweet potatoes imported directly from the land of kimchi.

According to the survey, there are two types of Korean sweet potatoes: the slightly white-skinned type and the purple-skinned type, packaged in paper boxes or plastic bags. In terms of appearance, this type of Korean sweet potato is quite similar to the Vietnamese sweet potatoes sold in the market, with uneven weight.

Korean sweet potatoes are the same variety as the sweet potatoes grown in Vietnam.

Korean sweet potatoes are sold in stores for 360,000 - 420,000 VND/kg, each 1kg of potatoes has about 5-10 tubers, depending on the weight. At this price, Korean sweet potatoes are as expensive as Japanese sweet potatoes. Compared to Vietnamese sweet potatoes, Korean sweet potatoes are 20 times more expensive.

Ms. Tran Phuong Nhung, a Korean goods dealer in Tay Ho (Hanoi) admitted that Korean sweet potatoes are similar to Vietnamese sweet potatoes sold in the market because they are grown from the same variety, the only difference is that they are grown in two countries. Accordingly, the taste of the potatoes is also slightly different due to the different soil conditions.

“But, if compared to Japanese sweet potatoes sold in Vietnam, Korean sweet potatoes are very different. For example, Japanese sweet potatoes are chewy, while Korean sweet potatoes are crumbly, sweet and extremely fragrant,” said Ms. Nhung.

However, Korean sweet potatoes cost up to 360,000 - 420,000 VND/kg, 20 times more expensive than Vietnamese sweet potatoes.

This is raw sweet potato, packaged in 0.5kg or 1kg bags. When you buy it, you can bake, boil, steam or fry it as you like. It's very convenient, unlike Japanese sweet potatoes which only come in pre-steamed form.

However, Ms. Nhung also said that this is a type of potato hand-carried from Korea, so the quantity each time the goods arrive is not much. In particular, the potato is very popular with women, so most customers have to order 5-10 days in advance, depending on the time.

“The customers who eat these potatoes are all regulars, ordering 2-3kg at a time. Accordingly, the average amount of Korean potatoes sold each week is estimated to be 250-300kg,” she boasted.

Meanwhile, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhan, an employee at a clean food store in Ward 3 (Binh Thanh, Ho Chi Minh City) also said that the store imported 50kg of Korean sweet potatoes for the first time to try selling because she thought that Japanese sweet potatoes were still more popular with women and people also trusted Japanese products more. However, she sold out all of those sweet potatoes within a day.

Up to now, the sweet potatoes her store has imported for sale have been sold for more than two months and are still not out of fashion. Every time the imported goods are only enough to pay for the customers who ordered them, there is almost never any stock available.

Although expensive, Korean sweet potatoes are still chosen by many women to buy and eat.

“At first, I was also puzzled because Korean potatoes were as expensive as Japanese potatoes. But when I asked customers, I found out that they often buy Korean potatoes because they are raw and can be processed in many ways, while Japanese potatoes are pre-steamed and you get bored of eating steamed potatoes,” she said.

Carrying out a plate of fragrant roasted sweet potatoes and giving each person one, Ms. Vu Hong Ngoc in Ho Tung Mau (Cau Giay, Hanoi) boasted: "Today the sweet potatoes are big, 1kg has exactly 5 potatoes, grilled extremely deliciously, soft and fragrant".

Ms. Ngoc said that for more than a month now, she has found a place to buy Korean sweet potatoes for only 360,000 VND/kg, 40,000 VND/kg cheaper than the old place, so her family has become "crazy fans" of Korean sweet potatoes.

“In fact, compared to Vietnamese sweet potatoes, they are expensive, but compared to foreign goods, especially foreign fruits, they are not expensive. I often buy them to steam or bake for my family to eat for breakfast. On cold days, I even put a few sweet potatoes in the oven for my family to eat instead of a meal. I don’t have to cook rice and everyone likes it,” she shared.

According to VNN