The Kimchi Crisis

In South Korea, as you may or may not know, kimchi (a cabbage side-dish) is a food staple, along with rice. However, prolonged summer rains + hot temperatures have combined to increase the price of cabbage (and lettuce, etc.) two or three times past its normal price, in addition to limiting its availability.

Some grocery stores are running out of the product, something I experienced a few nights ago when I went food shopping. I looked and looked, but could not find the kimchi. Finally, I bought a few small packets of radish kimchi, which is about all that was available. It wasn't until I read this news article today that I realized the reason that I had not been able to locate the cabbage product in the store: it simply wasn't available.

So Korea ia planning to import 100 or more tons of Chinese cabbage in order to lower prices and to simply make the vegetable available to the normal family. The government is also looking at bringing in the winter crop early and planning for the spring crop to be ready early.

Also, I read a quote today in a newspaper, which might seem a bit funny/wierd, but completely fits with the Korean psyche, that "cabbage grown in a different soil in China might not be good for Korean health/bodies" . . . and, of course, here, as elsewhere, there are concerns about many things made or grown in China.

It goes beyond that, though, as most Korean restaurants are obligated to serve kimchi, yet the price increases are forcing them into dire straits. They feel like they can't increase restaurant prices but still must serve this side dish; and, for those of you who have not eaten at a restaurant in Korea, refills on side-dishes are free, so this is potentially a huge monetary burden on restaurants.

Not only that, but many Korean grilled-meat restaurants serve a basket of lettuce leaves to wrap meat in, and that is also pushing them into financial loss, again because they really can't increase their prices (or no one will eat there).

There is kind of a cyclical effect happening that the newspapers haven't pointed out enough--households are feeling the pinch for kimchi and lettuce, so when they go to a restaurant they expect to fill up on these foods, but the restaurants can not afford to keep supplying their customers with firsts and seconds on such (this year) seasonally expensive products.

So, for all the above reasons, the government is stepping in. Ironically enough, last year the government intervened also, but rather to buy a surplus of radish and other crops that were then decomposed.