A Survey of the Perception of the Superior Factors to of Korean Traditional Foods by College Students with Food Related Majors

This study was conducted to examine the superior factors and the perception of Korean traditional foods by college students studying in food related industries. The subject group consisted of 65.0% of the students majoring in food service & culinary arts, 12.9% of the students majoring in food & nutrition, and 7.3% of the students majoring in baking & pastry. The nutritional value was evaluated as the top superior factor of Korean traditional foods by the study subjects. In addition, 92.4% of reported that they had eaten Korean traditional foods in the past, 76.8% of whom responded that the reason for having Korean traditional foods was its time-honored tradition. 'Cooking for oneself' was considered to be the most popular way (78.2%) of obtaining Korean traditional foods, while the traditional market (58.6%) was the most popular place to purchase the foods. 'Not having enough time' (47.2%) was the primary reason for not having Korean traditional foods, although 72.9% of the subjects reported that they wanted to learn about Korean foods. 'Standardization of taste, nutritional value, and recipes' was found to be the most important factor (41.3%) required to increase the consumption of Korean traditional foods. Additionally, 56.1% of the subjects responded that they feel there is a need for modernization of the cuisine to meet the taste of the general public. However, 61.4% of the subjects responded that the succession of traditional dietary culture was the primary reason for developing traditional cuisine, which indicates that there is a bright future for Korean traditional foods.