The bacteria-free kimchi, developed by top Korean scientists, will blast off along with the country's first astronaut after being approved by Russian space authorities, they said.

Instant noodles, cinnamon tea and uncooked organic food, all developed by the state-run food research body, have also been approved for the mission due in April.

The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute said kimchi usually contains lactic acid bacteria for fermentation, but bacteria have been shown to become more virulent in space.

"The lactic acid bacterium in kimchi is a useful microbe normally, but it could threaten astronauts' health in space so that kimchi must be provided in a germ-free state," it said.

The institute said the state food research body was also developing other Korean foods for space crews.

The South Korean government has selected Ko San, a 30-year-old computer science engineer, as the country's first astronaut to travel into space on a Russian-made Soyuz rocket on April 8.

Ko will fly to the International Space Station and stay there for up to eight days conducting various scientific experiments.

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