N.Korea faces rising food shortage, sources say

Posted on : 2010-07-16 12:19 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Observers say low crop yields, market restrictions and suspended aid have contributed to the shortage
 2008
2008

By Son Won-je

It has come to light that North Korea is experiencing a considerable drop in its yield of summer grains like potatoes, wheat, and barley due to unseasonably low temperatures this past spring. Observers are predicting that the country’s food shortage will worsen as the summer crop yield falls on the heels of last year’s drop in food production.

A source connected to North Korean affairs said Thursday that a drop in the country’s summer crop yields was forecasted in the wake of low temperatures of some 9.3 degrees below average in April.

“The North Korean food shortage is expected to become more severe as this combines with measures taken by the South Korean government following the Cheonan’s sinking, including the cessation of trade with and aid to North Korea,” the source said.

The source also said that North Korea was making efforts to resolve the problem itself by encouraging yields through national agriculture competitions, commencing operation of the Namhung Youth Chemical Complex fertilizer factory, and running provincial food processing plants. Those efforts, however, showed “limitations in their results.”

Speaking during a meeting of the National Assembly Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee on June 23, Unification Minister Hyun In-taek said, “North Korea’s poor harvest is due to factors including cold damage, and they are expecting a shortage of anywhere between 500 thousand and one million tons of food this year.”

The drop in summer crop yields follows a 4.6 percent reduction from the previous year’s food production in 2009, compounding the difficulties in the country’s food situation. Indeed, it has been widely reported that North Korea’s food distribution system has not been functioning normally in regions outside Pyongyang.

The North Korea source said, “North Korea’s food shortage is worsening due to reduced food yields, restrictions on market distribution quantities, and a drop in aid from South Korea and the rest of the international community.”

North Korea is also known to have recently affected a large-scale increase in its food imports from China in order to address the shortage. Its Chinese food imports between January and May of this year, totaling 110 thousand tons, represented an increase of some 41 percent over the same period last year.

The Unification Ministry stated that the market price of rice, which skyrocketed to over 1,000 Won ($0.83) in March in the wake of the country’s November 2009 currency reforms, had come back down to the 400 to 500 Won range as of June. The North Korea source, however, said, “While North Korea is working to address the side effects of the currency reform, problems with basic supply capabilities have led to severe hardship for North Koreans, and there have been expressions of discontent from citizens as a result.”

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