"Struggling with COVID, but Is Inflation Also Our Fault?"... Self-Employed Boiling Over the Dining Price Disclosure System

Government Investigates Major Franchises... Weekly Price and Fluctuation Rates of 12 Items Including Gimbap Announced on aT Website
aT Homepage Provides Weekly Price and Fluctuation Rates

The government will start announcing prices of major dining-out items from the 23rd. The photo shows the price of Kalguksu at a restaurant in Seoul on the 3rd.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] The government has decided to implement the 'Dining Price Disclosure System,' which publicly announces the prices and fluctuation rates of major dining items weekly starting from the 23rd. This measure is part of the price stabilization efforts and was promoted to help consumers make rational choices.

However, among self-employed business owners, criticism continues with voices saying, "Isn't the government shifting the responsibility for price increases onto us?" Some argue that such a system cannot be a fundamental solution to price stabilization. Experts pointed out that the dining price disclosure system will not help prevent price increases.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that from today, it will investigate and publicly disclose weekly the prices of major franchise brands for 12 items: ▲juk (rice porridge) ▲gimbap ▲hamburger ▲chicken ▲tteokbokki ▲pizza ▲coffee ▲jajangmyeon ▲samgyeopsal ▲pork ribs ▲galbitang ▲seolleongtang. As dining prices continue to soar, the government has strengthened market monitoring to curb price hikes.

The government selected a total of 62 franchise brands for investigation, considering the number of franchise stores, and designated 15 stores per brand as samples. Based on each brand's official website, the prices of 1 to 3 representative menu items will be surveyed, and every Wednesday, trends such as the rate of increase compared to the previous month and week will be posted on the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) website.

Earlier, on the 10th, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki announced the implementation of the dining price disclosure system at the Emergency Economic Central Countermeasures Headquarters meeting, stating, "We plan to significantly strengthen market monitoring efforts to prevent illegal price collusion or excessive price hikes in processed foods and dining prices that ride on market sentiment."

A notice stating that the restaurant in Sinchon, Seoul will remain closed until the lifting of COVID-19 business hour restrictions is posted. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. [Image source=Yonhap News]

This has led to continued backlash from self-employed business owners. They argue that the government is blaming them for inevitable price increases caused by soaring raw material costs, labor costs, delivery fees, and other various expenses.

One netizen posted on the country's largest self-employed community, 'Apeunikka Sajangida' ("Because It's Hard, I'm a Boss"), saying, "Isn't it normal for prices to be autonomously set based on ingredients, quality, and taste? The freedom to sell cheaply or expensively is the self-employed's choice. Whether to buy or not is the consumer's choice," criticizing it as "excessive government market intervention."

There are also criticisms that self-employed business owners are being made scapegoats in price policies following quarantine policies. A netizen who said they run a meat restaurant lamented, "It's outrageous. How could prices not rise when the minimum wage has increased?" and added, "Are self-employed people easy targets? Didn't self-employed people suffer the most due to quarantine policies? It seems increasingly difficult to run a store."

The government's move to monitor dining prices is related to the recent soaring inflation trend. Domestic consumer price inflation has been steadily rising. Since October last year, when it rose 3.2% compared to the same month the previous year, it has maintained a 3% range for four consecutive months: ▲3.8% in November ▲3.7% in December ▲3.6% in January this year.

However, some believe that the dining price disclosure system cannot be a fundamental solution to price stabilization. Ms. Yeo (27), a worker in her 20s, said, "I don't think prices will be controlled just by disclosing them. Consumers already roughly know the prices when ordering food," adding, "Also, prices have already risen as much as they can, so I think it's a bit late to start disclosing prices now."

Experts pointed out that such a system will not help suppress price increases. Kim Taegi, Professor Emeritus of Economics at Dankook University, said, "I believe the dining price disclosure system will not practically help prevent price increases. Even for the same food, the ingredients used vary by restaurant. Some places can use cheaper ingredients, while others use expensive ones. Disclosing prices without considering this is meaningless," he criticized.

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