韓食世界化：韓國飲食與國家品牌的塑造與想像

The Globalization of Korean Food: Korean Cuisine and the Construction and Imagination of a Korean National Brand

本文以韓國政府「韓食世界化」計畫為主要分析對象，討論當代韓國政府如何對「傳統食物」進行想像與論述建構：以食物作為媒介來進行國家品牌的塑造、並結合商業與文化策略將韓食推廣到全世界，以達到韓國國家品牌世界化的目的。韓國政府於2009年起，積極開展「韓食世界化」計畫，投入大量資金，打造韓食產業、人才培養、食品標準化、品牌認證、申請世界無形文化遺產認證，並與文化觀光產業結合，在2010年成立「韓食財團」作為專責機構，由農林水產部、觀光公社、食品研究單位以及觀光旅遊業者共同組成，目標是將韓食推向世界，期望在2017年能將韓式料理推升成為全球五大料理之一。本文討論的問題有三：首先，「韓食世界化」計畫的推行原因與過程；其次，分析此一計畫中關於韓食相關論述的主軸與建構；最後，進一步分析這個計畫以及與韓食相關的論述以理解國族料理的想像。透過本文的分析，作者嘗試理解當代韓國國族料理的論述與建構過程，分析食物如何成為國家用來推廣國家品牌的媒介，一方面對內用來凝聚集體認同，另一方面對外成為增進商業利益的手段。在這個飲食論述的建構過程中，韓國國族料理展現出「單一民族／文化」論述，以及「多元文化」概念的匱乏。 This paper aims to analyze the 'Globalization of Korean Food' Project initiated by the Korean government, and examine its construction of imagination and framings 'traditional Korean food'. I focus on how the Korean government uses food as a way to globalize the Korean brand - a form of national branding, and how they promote Korean food via both commercial and cultural strategies. The Korean government started the 'Globalization of Korean Food' Project in 2009 in order to support the Korean food industry, and began to develop human resources, standardize recipes, develop selection criteria for restaurants, and register Korean food as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage item. The Korean Food Foundation was established in order to achieve these goals in 2010, with participation from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Korea Tourism Organization, food research institutes, and the tourist industry. It aims to promote Korean cuisine worldwide. There are three major themes to be analyzed in this paper: Firstly, why and how did the Korean government promote 'Globalization of Korean Food' Project? Secondly, what are the major framings about Korean food in this project? And finally, what are the images of 'Korean national cuisine' promoted by this project? Through this investigation, we examine the constructions and framings of contemporary Korean national cuisine, and analyze how the state uses food as a tool for national branding. Food is used to construct collective identity, as well as to enhance commercial benefits. In the process of constructing food discourse, it also reveals ‘one ethnic-cultural’ ideology and a lack of cultural diversity.

This paper aims to analyze the 'Globalization of Korean Food' Project initiated by the Korean government, and examine its construction of imagination and framings 'traditional Korean food'. I focus on how the Korean government uses food as a way to globalize the Korean brand - a form of national branding, and how they promote Korean food via both commercial and cultural strategies. The Korean government started the 'Globalization of Korean Food' Project in 2009 in order to support the Korean food industry, and began to develop human resources, standardize recipes, develop selection criteria for restaurants, and register Korean food as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage item. The Korean Food Foundation was established in order to achieve these goals in 2010, with participation from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Korea Tourism Organization, food research institutes, and the tourist industry. It aims to promote Korean cuisine worldwide. There are three major themes to be analyzed in this paper: Firstly, why and how did the Korean government promote 'Globalization of Korean Food' Project? Secondly, what are the major framings about Korean food in this project? And finally, what are the images of 'Korean national cuisine' promoted by this project? Through this investigation, we examine the constructions and framings of contemporary Korean national cuisine, and analyze how the state uses food as a tool for national branding. Food is used to construct collective identity, as well as to enhance commercial benefits. In the process of constructing food discourse, it also reveals ‘one ethnic-cultural’ ideology and a lack of cultural diversity.