The Korea International Noodle Expo 2018, the nation’s biggest celebration of instant noodles, has announced it will specially create a zone for products from North Korea.

KBS Media, the host of the expo, said Friday that, “In line with the mood for peace created by the South-North summit, we have prepared a special exhibition of North Korean food.”

The special zone, named Okryugwan after the famous North Korean naengmyeon restaurant, will showcase instant ramen from the North. Representative North Korean snacks will be sold in limited numbers. 

The zone will have not only ramen but also North Korean bean-based vegetarian meat, tofu-rice and pongpong-ee ddeok (rice cake substitute made with corn flour).

North Korean groceries, clothes, daily supplies, photographs and music will be also among the items there.

This year’s exhibit sets out to break the bias that instant ramen is unhealthy. Fifteen noodle companies are joining the expo with premium instant noodles, made with more than 50 percent domestic raw ingredients.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs sponsored the healthy noodle initiative of the expo.

The ramen expo runs from June 8 through 10 at Coex Hall C in Samseong-dong in Gangnam, Seoul.

For more information, head to: http://ramenfair.com/

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)