"We must keep the chewy texture of wheat noodles while eliminating the distinctive smell of alternative noodles."
This was the common theme among food companies that make alternative noodles, including Daesang, Sempio, Pulmuone, and S-Food, which took part in a panel discussion at the 2025 Foodtech and Trend Conference held in the Orchid Room at the Westin Josun Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul, on the 23rd.
People are cutting back on wheat flour for health and diet reasons, but many still cannot give up the chewy texture of noodles. The four food companies are tackling this paradox with Foodtech.
Moon Jeong-hoon, a professor at Seoul National University's Department of Agricultural Economics and Sociology who served as the moderator for the alternative noodle panel, said, "The reason it is hard for people to quit noodles is the pleasure from the feel and texture of noodles as they skim the lips and mouth," adding, "Even if calories or gluten burden the body, the feel and texture of noodles become hard to give up." Moon said, "This is the background for why alternative noodles have taken root on our tables the fastest among various food sectors where Foodtech has been applied."
◇ Alternative noodles made with soybeans, peas, brown rice, and chicken breast instead of wheat flour
Foodtech corporations introduced a variety of alternative noodle products. Daesang expanded its tofu manufacturing technology to develop Cheongjeongwon Soy Protein Noodles. It took four years just to improve and capture the unfamiliar texture and smell typical of konjac and seaweed noodles. At 150 g, the soy protein noodles contain less than 100 kcal, only up to one-tenth the calories of regular wheat noodles.
Byun Myeong-hee, H2 PO at the Daesang Institute of Food Research, said, "Once we achieved a soft and springy texture like wheat noodles, our customer base expanded beyond dieters to general consumers." In particular, more than 60% of total sales of the soy protein noodles come from standalone items without sauce. Byun said, "As consumers such as YouTubers and those with gestational diabetes share their own recipes to suit their tastes, the standalone purchase rate has increased," adding, "We are maintaining average annual growth of more than 100%."
Sempio unveiled Brown Rice Somen, based on brown rice and rice flour, and High-Protein Somen with pea protein. Since launching rice somen in 2012, Sempio has held the No. 1 spot in the alternative noodle market using rice as an ingredient. As interest in health foods grew during COVID-19, demand increased, and Sempio took on a new challenge with protein somen.
Seo Dong-sun, head of marketing at SEMPIO FOODS, said, "Like the protein powder and beverage market, the need to supplement protein and nutrition in daily life has grown," and explained, "To reduce the distinctive smell of soy in particular, our research and development found that pea protein has less odor and good elasticity, which pairs well with wheat flour." Seo added, "Smell and noodle texture had been obstacles, but through repeated improvements, the consumer base has widened, especially among the exercising 20s and 30s and parents raising children."
Pulmuone developed Soy Milk and Buckwheat Noodles by blending roasted buckwheat to compensate for the overly soft texture unique to soy milk noodles. Pulmuone had already entered the alternative noodle market by releasing tofu noodles in 2020. It later developed soy milk noodles with a different texture from tofu noodles, but launched research to address the "not like noodles" texture.
Park Jong-hee, BM for Global Diet at Pulmuone Foods, said, "The rough texture of buckwheat goes well with naengmyeon types, and demand is growing as consumers who buy Pulmuone natto products purchase them together."
S-Food introduced Kkodan Noodles (Kkocco Protein Noodles), made by processing chicken breast. S-Food had focused on meat products such as ham and sausage, but began research on alternative noodles from the perspective of protein-centered Foodtech.
Kim Gyeong-dae, head of meat processing research and development (R&D) at S-Food's Food Innovation Division, said, "We did not think alternative diets necessarily had to be plant-based," adding, "We concluded we could open a new category of alternative noodles with a new texture while leveraging the high-protein image of chicken breast." At the event, Kkodan Noodles also received the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Award.
◇ From low-calorie to high-protein… new product development in full swing
In the latter part of the discussion, panelists answered Moon's question: "What is the next step?" Daesang is researching ways to solve dryness and a distinctive sweetness that occur when increasing protein content. Byun said, "We are conducting research and development to launch new high-protein products. In particular, targeting overseas export markets, we are conducting parallel research on gluten-free standards and shelf-life extension technologies."
Sempio is developing new products based on healthy mixed grains such as brown rice. Seo, the division head, said, "With many healthy grains such as quinoa, chickpeas, oats, and buckwheat, we have laid a certain technical foundation. We also plan to launch various new products based on mixed grains." Seo added, "We are also conducting research on noodle elasticity to launch alternative noodles in the udon style, which sells second-best after somen."
Pulmuone plans to reflect consumer feedback on its oat noodle product within its alternative noodle lineup. Park, the BM, said, "Oat noodles were launched to lower carbohydrate content and raise protein content," but added, "Some consumers say they feel full too quickly because the protein content is too high, so we plan to release a product with reduced protein content as well."
S-Food is conducting research to launch a convenience store version of Kkodan Noodles. Kim, the head, said, "We have been running commercialization tests for the past six months to launch a convenience store product," adding, "We plan to maximize the advantage that noodles made with chicken breast do not get soggy."
Meanwhile, the discussion also included a tasting and evaluation session where not only the panelists but also attendees sampled products from the four alternative noodle companies. Moon said, "This is an era when technology is changing the table. The active release of alternative noodles is a signal that culinary culture innovation using Foodtech has begun."