Ginseng products will now be overseen by the United Nations′ food standards body as a food or food ingredient.
The Codex Alimentarius Commission， which examines and adopts new food safety and quality standards， on Monday approved the decision to allow Korean ginseng products to rank within the international standards.
Until now， ginseng products were considered medicines in most countries，… meaning they were subject to complex customs procedures and fewer customs－related benefits.
Seoul′s Ministry of Agriculture， Food and Rural Affairs said it expects the new standard to open up more export opportunities for ginseng products.
Traditional Korean foods such as kimchi ， the red－pepper paste gochujang … and the soybean paste doenjang … are already registered under the commission′s international list of food－related standards and guidelines.