The Gyeondyo-bar, which translates as ‘hang in there’, is a grapefruit-flavoured ice-cream containing 0.7 per cent oriental raisin tree fruit juice – a traditional hangover remedy cited in a Korean medicine book from the 17th century that is included in popular hangover potions.
The ice-cream bar’s name “expresses the hardships of employees who have to suffer a working day after heavy drinking, as well as to provide comfort to those who have to come to work early after frequent nights of drinking”, convenience store chain WithMe FS, a unit of E-Mart, part of the Shinsegae Group conglomerate, said in a press release.
Hangover ‘cures’ are big business in South Korea, where pills, beverages and cosmetics generate around 150 billion won ($176 million) in annual sales, according to industry data.