"Government to Purchase 200,000 Tons of Rice Next Month"

Ruling Party and Government Agree on Market Isolation for Excess Production

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon, Sejong=Reporter Kim Hyun-jung] The Democratic Party of Korea and the government have decided to purchase 200,000 tons of rice in January next year to prevent a price drop caused by excess rice production.

Park Wan-joo, the Policy Committee Chair of the Democratic Party, stated at a briefing after the 'Rice Market Isolation Party-Government Consultation' held at the National Assembly on the morning of the 28th, "We will isolate 200,000 tons in January (government purchase) and proceed with 70,000 tons depending on market conditions." Park added, "Candidate Lee Jae-myung has also repeatedly requested market isolation for excess rice production, so it can be seen that this part has been accepted." Along with this, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs plans to prepare measures to adjust the rice cultivation area next year to ensure appropriate rice production. A ministry official said, "To prevent repeated oversupply of rice, we plan to prepare appropriate production measures for next year in consultation with producer organizations and local governments."

Minister Kim Hyun-soo of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs is delivering opening remarks at the "Rice Market Isolation Party-Government Negotiation" held at the National Assembly on the 28th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

According to Statistics Korea, this year's rice production is 3,882,000 tons, a 10.7% increase from last year's 3,507,000 tons, resulting in an oversupply situation of about 270,000 tons. Accordingly, the price of rice at production sites was 51,254 KRW per 20 kg as of the 25th, down 9.8% from 56,803 KRW on October 5. Due to this decline, farmers' organizations have repeatedly called for rice market isolation measures, and this party-government discussion is interpreted as partially accepting those demands.

However, there are concerns that this market isolation measure could further raise consumer prices, which are already at a high level. Although rice prices this year have fallen compared to last year, they are still relatively high compared to the average year. The average rice price over the past five years, excluding this year, is 49,490 KRW, making this year's price 11.3% more expensive. Meanwhile, the consumer price inflation rate announced by Statistics Korea this month for November was 3.7%, the highest level in 9 years and 11 months. In particular, the price increase rate for agricultural, livestock, and fishery products was 7.6%, further increasing the burden on grocery prices.

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