'I eat meal prep instead of cereal in the morning' — is cereal on its way out? [Food360]

Cereal, once dubbed the nation's go-to breakfast, is quietly losing its place at the table. Its image as a high-carbohydrate food has put it squarely at odds with the health-conscious trend, and consumers are turning instead to convenience store ready-to-eat meals and protein products to start their day.

Point-of-sale data from market research firm Marketlink, released Monday by the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation (aT), showed cereal retail sales reached 39.7 billion won ($28.7 million) in the first quarter of this year, down 11.4 percent from the same period a year earlier. Sales continued to slide in April, falling 7.3 percent year-on-year to 13 billion won.

The decline is not recent. After peaking at 231.7 billion won in 2022, when the COVID-19 pandemic drove a surge in at-home eating, sales have fallen every year since — to 217.3 billion won in 2023, 191.2 billion won in 2024, and 169.8 billion won in 2025. The past two years have each seen double-digit percentage declines.

Convenience stores have moved in to fill the void. The expansion of ready-to-eat options — kimbap, dosirak, sandwiches and more — has fundamentally reshaped the competitive landscape for breakfast alternatives, analysts say. GS25 launched a high-protein kimbap series and low-sugar, low-fat triangle kimbap in late April, and within three months the two lines had sold about 1.5 million and more than 1 million units, respectively.

The food industry is actively positioning protein products as the new breakfast staple. According to aT, the domestic protein food market grew from 81.3 billion won in 2018 to 450 billion won in 2023 and is projected to reach the 800 billion won range this year. At convenience stores, protein drinks have already overtaken banana milk — long the top-selling beverage — to claim the No. 1 spot in drink sales.

Eating habits among younger consumers are also shifting. Meal-prep culture — preparing meals in advance to manage weight or reduce carbohydrate and sugar intake — is spreading. The trend has gained further momentum as consumers facing high food prices join the meal-prep movement to cut costs.

Cereal makers are responding. Dongsuh Foods has rolled out two new low-sugar granola products this year — Post Granola Low Sugar Lentil Oat and Post Granola Zero Sugar Farro Whole Barley — expanding its low-sugar granola lineup to four varieties. Nongshim Kellogg has reorganized its product range into low-sugar and protein categories and extended its Protein Granola Zero Sugar line into a cup cereal format.

"As the health-conscious trend that took hold after COVID-19 continues, more consumers are turning away from cereal because of its high carbohydrate content," an industry official said. "Cereal makers are responding by lowering sugar levels and introducing products fortified with nutrients such as protein."