Food and drug safety ministry's Ansim PLAY wins IBA silver

The food and drug safety ministry said its Ansim PLAY digital campaign won a silver prize at the 2026 International Business Awards for participatory content tied to games and social-media culture popular with young people.

The ministry said it ran the campaign to help food-safety rules become a natural part of everyday life. The IBA, in its 23rd year, selects business achievements in management, marketing, public relations and technology from global companies and organizations.

The silver follows three domestic awards in 2025 at the Korean PR Awards, the Public Brand Awards and the Korea Digital Advertising Awards.

"The fact that food-safety policy was conveyed in a way that the public could participate in directly and relate to was highly regarded internationally," Oh Yu-kyung, head of the food and drug safety ministry, said. "We will continue to strengthen tailored digital communication that people can put into practice in their daily lives," she added.

For its 2025 third season, the campaign paired an online, game-based experience called the "Destiny Bloodline Test" with the Food Safety Crew event, which encouraged participants to practice food-safety rules. It also used ballpark scoreboards for offline outreach and held a food-safety participation event for spectators at the KBO All-Star Game. The ministry collaborated with comedian and influencer Lee Eun-ji on content reviews and videos of participants sharing their experiences.

The ministry said awareness of the importance of everyday food safety and willingness to follow food-safety rules increased among every age group surveyed after participation. The largest gains were recorded among 19- to 24-year-olds in a 2025 effectiveness survey of 500 men and women aged 19 to 39 nationwide.