The government will allow so-called "hot dog boys" to sell prepared foods such as hot dogs and ice cream directly to spectators at baseball parks and other sports facilities. Previously, only limited mobile sales of beer were permitted, but going forward, mobile sales of prepared foods will also be allowed within the scope of meeting certain hygiene and safety standards.
According to relevant ministries on the 6th, at the request of the Regulatory Rationalization Committee, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety issued an authoritative interpretation stating that food service operators at baseball parks may sell prepared foods to spectators on a mobile basis, and prepared related hygiene and safety guidelines.
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety determined that "in a confined space such as a baseball park, an operator may sell prepared foods to spectators on a mobile basis within a scope that can prevent food poisoning." No separate additional business registration is required, and mobile sales workers must undergo health examinations in accordance with the Food Sanitation Act. The government plans to establish guidelines to prevent food poisoning and apply them in the field.
This interpretation extends the previously permitted "beer boys" concept to food. The existing Food Sanitation Act, as a principle, requires cooking and serving within the business premises and allows delivery only upon customer request, so it was unclear whether selling food while circulating among spectator seats was permitted. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety determined that it is possible in a space with restricted access, such as a baseball park, when a licensed operator sells food on the premise of hygiene management.
The government also reviewed cases in the United States and Japan. In Major League Baseball in the U.S., a "stadium vendor" culture selling hot dogs, pretzels, peanuts, and potato chips has long been established, and in Japanese professional baseball, an "uriko" system selling not only beer but also ice cream and beverages is in operation.
On the ground, there is expected to be demand for mobile sales of ice cream, highballs, and snacks. Some ballpark officials predicted that, with QR ordering and pickup systems becoming active, there would be sufficient marketability centered on items that can be easily purchased while watching a game, along with demand for hot dog sales.
This measure is cited as a representative example of "regulatory innovation that the public can feel" that Park Yong-jin, vice chairman of the presidential Regulatory Rationalization Committee, has emphasized since taking office. In his inauguration interview with the Seoul Economic Daily last April, Vice Chairman Park cited the baseball park "hot dog boy" as a representative improvement task, saying, "Regulatory innovation should start from the question of why something possible abroad is not possible in our country."
Vice Chairman Park emphasized, "It may look like a small improvement, but I see it as the starting signal for regulatory innovation the public can feel," adding, "We will resolve, one by one, the inconvenient regulations the public feels in daily life and the regulations that do not match globally accepted standards." He continued, "If regulatory innovation has until now been limited to resolving corporate grievances, going forward we must use both the left foot of 'public-felt regulatory rationalization' and the right foot of 'corporate regulatory reform' together to create growth momentum." He added, "It usually takes more than three months to actually resolve such regulations through consultation with ministries," and, "Even if the pace is slow, we will be patient and see it through, starting with regulations the public can feel."
