NextKitchen said on Jan. 22 it has issued a formal apology over its chief executive being indicted on sexual assault allegations and has suspended him, excluding him from all duties.

NextKitchen is a food manufacturer led by Mr Jung, the husband of Kurly chief executive Kim Seul-a (김슬아). It is an affiliate in which Kurly holds a 45.23 percent stake, and most of its sales come from transactions with Kurly. As of 2024, Kurly bought about 25.3 billion won worth of products from NextKitchen.

Prosecutors earlier indicted Mr Jung, NextKitchen's chief executive, without detention on a charge of indecent assault. He is accused of sexually assaulting an employee, identified as A, who was a trainee at Kurly, in June last year. The investigation had been under way following a complaint filed by the employee.

In a statement released on Jan. 22, NextKitchen said, "We deeply apologise for causing concern due to the unfortunate incident involving our chief executive." It added, "We sincerely apologise to the employee who suffered harm and we recognise the seriousness of this matter."

As follow-up steps, the company plans a comprehensive review through an independent external specialist organisation of victim protection and whether the company's measures are appropriate. Until the review is completed, it said it will suspend Mr Jung and exclude him from company management and all duties so that he cannot exercise any influence.

The industry is watching closely what impact the legal risks involving the chief executive's spouse may have on Kurly's external credibility and the preliminary listing review process as the company pushes for an initial public offering.