hankyoreh

like those lived in by low-income youths in Noryangjin. The space is about 5m2 with no windows. A room with a window costs more

By Jung Hwan-bong and Lee Kyung-mi, staff reporters

Like most young people in his neighborhood, Jang usually skips breakfast. He eats out for all his meals because he lives in a small rented room with no cooking facilities. Jang, 27, is studying for the civil service examination and has no steady income. He and others like him must therefore live frugally, with their health suffering as a result.

“The point is that I don’t have money. The best way to save money is to either eat cheap food or to go without,” said Jang. When Jang does eat, he eats cheap meals like a cup of fried rice, which costs 2,500 Korean won (US$2.20). Most of the time, two meals cost less than 5000 won (US$4.40).

Jang has fixed expenses of 700,000 won (about US$615) per month: 300,000 won for rent, 100,000 won for space to study in a reading room and 300,000 won for classes at a civil service examination institute. Since he has no time for a part time job, he usually takes one-day jobs that earn him around 50,000 won (about US$44).

Although his family assists him financially, Jang spends as little as possible out of consideration for his family’s financial situation. “Food prices around Noryangjin are shockingly cheap. Pork and rice only costs 3,000 won because the rice is from China and the pork is from the US.”

Jang admitted that his ‘Noryangjin lifestyle’ of eating the cheapest food available has damaged his health. In the occasional cases where he meets his friends and gets the chance to have ‘real’ grilled pork, he binges. It is definitely unhealthy. “I want to stop eating these artificially seasoned salty foods or kimchi from China,” Jang said shaking his head.

A debate was held by Seoul City honorary youth vice mayor team ‘Youth Amhaeng-eosa (Undercover inspectors)’ and Seoul City Citizen Communication Department on August 21 with the theme ‘Youths’ Diet and Health.’ Some 70 youth participants talked openly about their dietary habits.

Kim, 21, eats out 12 times a week, mostly at convenience stores. While he eats this type of food all the time, it is not because he actually likes it, but because he does not have money for anything better. Kim’s monthly income of 600,000 won (about US$530) comes entirely from his part time job at a cafe.

“I work at a cafe which pays me minimum wage- 4,580 won ($4.03) per hour. I have to make 30-40 coffees an hour just to buy one myself. I feel so inferior and defeated when I earn 4,580 won an hour to eat seaweed rolls that cost 2,500 won. Sometimes I eat leftovers from the cafe, but it’s worth it if I can save another 60,000-70,000 won a month by having cheap meals.” Kim is still recovering from tuberculosis and his poor diet often leads to indigestion and fatigue.

Even to office workers who have regular income, eating out is troublesome. Kwon, 32, has been working in Seoul’s Jongno district for 7 years and has been living by himself for 9 years.

“To save money, I need to find cheap meals. But near my workplace, meals cost 7-8,000 won. And despite the high price, I feel like the food is rather unhealthy.” Since cooking at home is also expensive, Kwon has been purchasing instant food, which often makes him sick.

“I am a healthy type, but I am atrophic. I didn’t know my atrophy was this bad when I was living with my parents. But having cheap instant food caused my atrophy to get worse. So to cure it, I eat a bunch of veggies and fruits. This cycle costs more than having normal meals. I wish there were more places to get cheaper and healthier meals.”

A survey of young people’s eating habits was conducted by ‘Youth Amhaeng-eosa’ using social media such as Twitter and Facebook. This survey, with 327 participants ranging from 19-39 years old, revealed that office workers spent 6,850 won (about US$6) on average per meal, while students spent 4,210 won.

51% stated that they ate one meal out, 30.3% had two meals out and 5.8% ate all their meals out. Their reasons for dining out were price (39.5%), followed by taste (33.4%).

79.7% replied that they have eaten food from convenience store. Out of that, 29.8% said that they eat there 1-3 times per week, 15.3% 2-3 times and 6.9% 4-6 times per week. 46.9% chose convenience store food for its cheap price while 29.6% said their eat there because of a lack of time.

Seoul’s honorary vice mayor Kim Young-gyoung said, “Providing inexpensive lunch boxes or operating free restaurants in areas with high youth populations such as Noryangjin has been suggested. The government is seeking practical policies to improve youths’ diets and health.”

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