▲ Chunleong Food / CEO Pansu Shin

(PowerKorea) Bitter melon is a summer fruit rich in vitamin C. It is widely grown in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. Pansu Shin, CEO of Chunleong Food and President of Hamyang Farming Association Corporation, is the one who first succeeded cultivating bitter melon in South Korea and his business was designated as a local business promotion project of the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in 2011. 

Shin paid attention to the healthy effect of bitter melon produced in Okinawa, Japan in 2004 and started growing his own. Okinawa is known as one of the four long live villages in the world and bitter melon is said to contribute to this. 

“Soil in Hamyang County contains rich germanium. We work in cooperation with hospitals and the Okinawa Agricultural Research Center for facilities and management in order to produce the best quality bitter melon in South Korea. Bitter melon here is made into pills and teas for consumers to take easy and simple, and is being exported to the US and South East Asia” says Shin.

Bitter melon contains charantin and p-insulin which are known to be good to ease symptoms of diabetes and high blood pressure and also contains 120mg of vitamin C per 100g: strawberry contains 80mg, cabbage 40mg and lemon 90mg. Bitter melon grows fast and is relatively easier to cultivate than other crops. 

Chungleong Food’s bitter melon met the standard of the FDA and obtained HACCP. Also, Shin is working in cooperation with the Rural Development Administration for development of bitter melon-based health supplement and carrying out various tests. 

“Chunleong Food is unsparing in technology transfer, facility investment, effectiveness tests and agricultural festivals so that we can promote excellent Hamyang bitter melon to consumers home and abroad and to make contribution to regional economy” says Shin. 

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