To tackle a kimchi crisis, South Korea banks on massive cabbage warehouses
Fresh Cabbage
South Korea
Published Sep 30, 2022
Tridge summary
South Korea's kimchi makers are in serious pain — brought low as a climate change-induced shortage of cabbages sent prices rocketing this year, exacerbating damage inflicted by cheaper offerings from Chinese competitors. Such is the sense of crisis surrounding the spicy pickled side dish eaten daily by many Koreans and central to Korean identity, that the government recently laid out plans to construct two massive cabbage storage facilities.
Original content
SEOUL (Sept 30): At 9,900 sq m each, the facilities to be built in the rural counties of Goesan and Haenam will, combined, be equivalent to three football fields in size. They will be able to store 10,000 tonnes of cabbages and pickle 50 tonnes of cabbages daily. Construction, expected to cost taxpayers 58 billion won (US$40 million), is due to be completed in 2025. For local kimchi makers struggling to purchase sufficient cabbages at current high prices, government intervention to store the produce and supply the industry at affordable rates can't come soon enough. A climate shift in recent years that has brought higher temperatures and heavier rain has damaged cabbage crops, curtailing supply. This year, prices of cabbages doubled in less than three months, part of a broad spike in inflation to 24-year highs hit in July. "We used to purchase cabbages in June then store them for use later when cabbage prices climb, but this year we are already out of stock," said Ahn Ik-jin, ...
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