With construction set to begin in August, CJ Foods is advancing commercial land-based gim cultivation to deliver a stable, year-round supply of high-quality Korean seaweed for global consumers CJ Foods…

With construction set to begin in August, CJ Foods is advancing commercial land-based gim cultivation to deliver a stable, year-round supply of high-quality Korean seaweed for global consumers

CJ Foods is accelerating the commercialisation of land-based gim cultivation technology. Gim, a Korean seaweed food commonly roasted and eaten as a snack or used in dishes such as gimbap, has gained global attention as Korean cuisine continues to grow in popularity and consumers increasingly seek healthy foods. While global demand for gim is rising, conventional ocean-based cultivation is reaching its limits due to rising sea temperatures.

To address this challenge, CJ Foods has been advancing R&D and commercialisation of land-based gim cultivation technology since 2018, and today announced that it will break ground this August on a commercial land-based gim cultivation facility in Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do, South Korea. This milestone marks the company’s entry into the commercialisation phase, following its achievement as the first in Korea to successfully cultivate gim in a 3-ton laboratory-scale tank in 2021 and its securing of a gim variety optimised for land-based cultivation in 2022. The facility is scheduled for completion in the first half of 2027, and bibigo gim products produced there will be supplied to global markets, including the U.S. Looking ahead, CJ also plans to build a shared-growth land-based cultivation model in partnership with local governments and fishing communities in South Korea.

The new commercial facility will be equipped with multiple tanks and cultivation systems. Based on the lab-pilot facility at CJ Blossom Park R&D Centre and enhanced by CJ’s longstanding manufacturing expertise, the site will serve as a key bridge to mass production and help accelerate the growth of CJ Foods’ gim business. At this facility, the company plans to move toward large-scale commercialisation, leveraging its core technologies, including Korea’s first and only gim variety dedicated to land-based cultivation, full life-cycle control technology for gim, specialised culture media (nutrient solution), and integrated quality control.

Once operational, the facility will make it possible to supply gim year-round with fresh and consistent quality, rather than harvesting only during the winter season as in conventional ocean farming. Because the gim will be cultivated in a precisely controlled production environment, CJ Foods expects to secure differentiated taste and flavour as well as a high level of quality consistency. Through this initiative, the company aims to establish a stable global supply chain for gim and take a leading position in the sustainable future food market as worldwide demand continues to expand.