- From Import to Export: Comprehensive Coffee Business Model… Steering Committee Formation Underway -

BJFEZ Hosts Strategic Seminar to Boost the Premium Coffee Industry

- BJFEZ Launches High-Value Coffee Industry Pilot in Free Trade Zone

- From Regulatory Reforms to Export Demonstrations, Creating a Turning Point for the Coffee Sector

- Commissioner Park Seong-ho: “We Will Develop BJFEZ into Northeast Asia’s Coffee Industry Hub”

The Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone Authority (Commissioner Park Seong-ho, hereinafter “BJFEZ”) held the “BJFEZ Coffee Industry Activation Seminar (Coffee to Biz in BJFEZ)” on August 13 at the P-ark multipurpose cultural complex in Yeongdo-gu, Busan.

BJFEZ boasts ideal conditions for fostering the coffee industry, with 94% of South Korea’s coffee imports arriving at Busan New Port, extensive hinterland and free trade zones offering institutional flexibility, global accessibility, and infrastructure optimized for logistics, storage, and processing. Leveraging these strengths, BJFEZ has actively pursued the attraction of global companies and the development of new industries.

The seminar aimed to present a high-value coffee industry business model covering the entire value chain — from import and processing to distribution and export — and to initiate the formation of a practical steering committee. This committee will focus on regulatory improvements and feasibility reviews based on feedback from stakeholders across the value chain.

More than 50 participants from academia, industry, and government attended, including the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI), Bank of Korea Busan Headquarters, Busan Metropolitan City, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, Busan Customs, Busan Port Authority, Busan Development Institute, Gyeongnam Research Institute, Busan and Gyeongnam Technopark, LGC Co., Ltd., Ten Percent Coffee, and Central Pacific Bank.

◆“From Import to Export” — Verifying the Feasibility of a Full-Cycle Coffee Industry Model in the Free Trade Zone

In the keynote presentation, KMI introduced a smart coffee industry business model utilizing IoT and blockchain technologies. The model integrates and digitizes the entire process from green bean import and pre-processing to refining, blending, storage, and export — a structure deemed feasible for implementation within the Free Trade Zone.

LGC Co., Ltd. CEO Lim Su-jeong presented plans to establish direct supply chains connecting coffee-producing regions in Southeast Asia and Latin America to Busan, proposing strategies to transform Busan Port into a comprehensive coffee logistics hub for Northeast Asia.

Moon Ju-ho, Head of Ten Percent Coffee, shared insights from the perspective of a large-scale roasting and processing company, recommending infrastructure improvements, streamlined permits, and simplified certification processes to facilitate the creation of a coffee manufacturing cluster.

The Bank of Korea Busan Headquarters shared a research report outlining the growth potential and policy direction of the regional coffee industry, suggesting initiatives such as fostering local brands, building shared infrastructure, and strengthening the industrial ecosystem.

◆ Steering Committee Formation Underway — Connecting Regulatory Reforms to Real-World Implementation

Building on the seminar outcomes, BJFEZ plans to work with relevant organizations to identify complex regulatory issues involving quarantine, certification, and customs clearance; conduct feasibility studies; establish phased implementation strategies; and strengthen collaborative networks among stakeholders.

The steering committee — centered around the participating institutions — will be launched by September, with the goal of linking projects to demonstration initiatives by 2026. This will pave the way for a detailed roadmap for commercializing coffee industry projects within the Free Trade Zone.

Commissioner Park stated, “This seminar marks the first step in public-private cooperation to revitalize the coffee industry and establishes a solid foundation for practical implementation accompanied by regulatory improvements. BJFEZ designated green coffee beans as one of its five strategic commodities last year and recently secured the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s designation of ‘coffee processing’ as a core strategic industry for free economic zones. Leveraging the outstanding logistics infrastructure of the Busan New Port hinterland, we will accelerate the creation of a coffee industry cluster and develop BJFEZ into the central hub for the coffee industry in Northeast Asia.”

※ Disclaimer: This document was translated using ChatGPT and may contain minor translation inaccuracies.