ILLIT appointed as NongHyup’s “Rice Consumption Promotion Ambassador”

On July 3, NongHyup Economic Holdings announced that it has appointed BELIFT LAB’s girl group, ILLIT, as NongHyup’s first “Rice Consumption Promotion Ambassador.” They will be launching a large-scale campaign, “Like me, like 米 (rice): it’s 米,” targeting the MZ (Millennial and Gen Z) generation.

The connection sparked when ILLIT released their fourth mini-album, ‘MAMIHLAPINATAPAI,’ in April, which features the title track “It’s Me.” The song gained attention for its pun on the Chinese character 米 (pronounced as mǐ), which means rice.

NongHyup Economic Holdings plans to leverage ILLIT's global fandom to promote the value of Korean rice to both domestic and international audiences.

The campaign is set to kick off in mid-July, with one of the main content features being “ILLIT’s Dangjin Rice Planting,” which will be released through official channels. The upcoming entertainment content will capture the process of the ILLIT members personally visiting a farm in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province, experiencing rice planting alongside farmers, and learning the precious value of homegrown rice.

Additionally, a series of follow-up programs are slated to be unveiled, including the operation of the “Happy 米 (Rice) Meal Car,” where ILLIT will personally select the menu, an “Eat Breakfast” campaign challenge encouraging people to eat breakfast, and the release of a celebratory video for Rice Day.

Kim Ju Yang, the CEO of NongHyup Agribusiness Group, shared, “We have high expectations for promoting the rice consumption campaign with global star ILLIT. We hope this serves as an opportunity for the core consumer block of the future to experience the value of our rice and a healthy food culture, naturally joining the movement to spread a culture of rice consumption.”