Tanghulu rode a wave of unprecedented popularity all over the peninsula, with the peak in 2023. New ways to enjoy the craze caught on: “malatanghulu” means to grab a stick of tanghulu after a meal of malatang, and people invented tanghulu fusion, such as macaron-stuffed tanghulu and bingsu topped with the sugar-shelled fruit. However, the main demographic that purchased the fruit candy stick, the so-called MZ generation, grew bored and slowed down spending. In reality, not as sweet as expected, the tanghulu mania devolved into a death match for mere survival. 

Due to the initial sweep of popularity, thousands of entrepreneurs dove into the business. More than 1300 locations opened just last year, and a famous franchise “달콤왕가탕후루 (Dalkom WangGa Tanghulu)” expanded to 532 stores. 

Mi-Hye Ha, an owner of a branch of WangGa Tanghulu, said, “Our place opened last year in June, which was just the point where tanghulu started gaining popularity in Korea. Our store also hit its peak at that time.”
Unfortunately, supply increased and demand decreased. As competition fiercely rose, owners closed up shop or sold to others. No rarity in Korea, one can spot two tanghulu joints near each other. Among 98 shops that shut down, 45 of them lasted less than a month. Sean Kim, an AP Econ student, said, “I don’t get why people were crazy about it in the first place. People liked the sugar-coated stuff, but they lost interest and don’t want it anymore.”

Yet, those scary numbers only reveal a glimpse of the current dread. Ha said, “Compared to when the tanghulu trend peaked, the number of customers has almost halved.” The unprecedented surge in fruit prices became the heaviest burden. According to Statistics Korea (통계청), overall fruit prices proliferated by 41% over the past year. Mandarin oranges, one of the most important ingredients, faced a 78% increase alone. 

Scrutiny over health concerns due to excessive sugar consumption arose. Kim said, “Sugar with fruit, it’s too much sugar. That doesn’t work out most of the time. I expected the tanghulu craze to end soon.”

To compound the problem, sticky discarded sticks sprinkle public sidewalks, which intensified the brutal debate. A myriad of shops declared their spaces as “no tanghulu zones,” and they barred entrance if people held a fruit stick in hand. 

Harsh opinions swept Naver Cafe, with comments like, “Did you really think that a trend of sugar bombs would last forever?”, “I saw a tanghulu shop opening nearby a few days ago and now there’s another one…”, and “I hope our community will see a wider variety of food places soon.”

As tanghulu shops enter freefall, owners feel pushed until they have no other choice than to shutter their doors. A trend started by an interest in a unique combination of sugary flavors turns out to not contain an entirely new taste. The flavor combo of sugar and fruit is easily replaceable by future desserts, so the trend-savvy crowd will soon discover something new. The inevitable downfall of the tanghulu obsession seems quite predictable after all.