This Year’s Rice Production 3.882 Million Tons, Increasing for the First Time in 6 Years... Up 10.7% in One Year

Impact of Rice Price Increase and Termination of Support Programs for Other Crop Cultivation

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] This year’s rice production increased by more than 10% compared to the previous year, marking a turnaround to growth after six years.

According to the "2021 Rice Production Survey Results" announced by Statistics Korea on the 15th, this year’s rice production reached 3.882 million tons (t), an increase of 375,000 t (+10.7%) from last year. This is the first time in six years since 2015 (2%) that annual rice production has increased compared to the previous year. Rice production had decreased for five consecutive years since 2016, falling to the 3.5 million ton range last year, but recovered to the 3.8 million ton range this year.

The yield per 10 ares (are, 100㎡) of cultivated land was 530 kg, up 9.8% from a year earlier, and the rice cultivation area (732,477 ha) also increased by 0.8%. Statistics Korea explained, "As the recent rice price increase continues, the 'Paddy Field Non-Rice Crop Cultivation Support Project,' which provided subsidies to farmers cultivating crops other than rice, has ended, leading to an increase in rice cultivation area."

According to Agricultural Product Distribution Information, the average wholesale price for 20 kg of rice this year was 58,287 won, up 16.9% from last year. By province, rice production was highest in Jeonnam (790,000 t), Chungnam (773,000 t), and Jeonbuk (594,000 t), in that order.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.