Easing of alcohol content in Malaysian liquor...expecting expansion of exports in ASEAN region

As Malaysia revises its alcohol content standards for cloudy liquor and soju to align with South Korean export products, the expansion of ASEAN region exports of K-liquor is expected. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (Minister Oh Yoo-kyung) announced on the 20th that the Malaysian government plans to revise the alcohol standards for cloudy liquor and soju, to be implemented from April 1, 2026. This was disclosed by the Malaysian Ministry of Health at the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade Committee (WTO TBT) held in Geneva, Switzerland on November 12. The name of soju has also been changed from the previous "Shochu" to the Korean term "Soju," reinforcing the status of K-liquor. According to this, Malaysia will revise the alcohol standards from the previous 12-20% for cloudy liquor and 16% or more for soju to 3% or more for cloudy liquor and 10% or more for soju. This fully reflects the regulatory relaxation requested by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. ...