"No Feared Kimjang Crisis"... Relief in Kimjang Season as Cabbage Prices Plummet

Cabbage Prices Continue to Fall...Lower Than Average
Kimjang Vegetables Expensive but Declining from Peak
Kimjang Costs Down 13% Compared to Two Weeks Ago
Direct Kimjang Rate Up 1.8% Year-on-Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] As the kimchi-making season has officially begun, there is no expectation of a kimchi-making crisis this year due to the sharp rise in cabbage prices. The price of cabbage, the main ingredient for kimchi-making, has plummeted, so the cost of making kimchi is expected to remain at the average level. The prices of other ingredients are also gradually declining.

According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) on the 15th, the wholesale price of 10kg of cabbage was 7,424 won as of the previous day, which is 10% lower than the average level of 8,295 won. It has dropped 40% compared to 12,440 won a month ago and 78% compared to 34,240 won two months ago. The retail price per head is 3,172 won, which is 48% cheaper than 6,150 won a month ago and 3% cheaper than the average price of 3,271 won.

Regarding the kimchi-making vegetables, prices are still higher than the average, but they are on a downward trend compared to their peak. The wholesale price of radish for 20kg soared to the 40,000 won range last September but has now fallen to 14,360 won. Although this is somewhat higher than the average price of 11,421 won, it is more than half cheaper. Onions are priced at 23,540 won for 15kg, showing little change from 23,476 won a month ago, and domestic peeled garlic is similarly priced at 163,667 won for 20kg compared to 163,767 won a month ago. Green onions are priced at 4,946 won per kg, down 14% from 5,796 won a month ago, but about 5% higher than the average price of 4,717 won.

Accordingly, the cost of making kimchi is also decreasing. The estimated cost for making kimchi with 20 heads of cabbage, as projected by aT on the 10th, was 221,389 won, which is 9.1% lower compared to 243,575 won at the beginning of the same month last year. It is 13% lower than 254,546 won two weeks ago (October 27) and 9.3% lower than 243,959 won a week ago (November 3). This downward trend is expected to continue for the time being.

This is due to the full-scale shipment of autumn cabbage, which has increased supply. According to the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI), the production volume of autumn cabbage supplied during the kimchi-making season increased by 10.4% compared to last year. Until September, abnormal weather caused the spread of diseases, resulting in poor cabbage harvests compared to the average, which caused wholesale prices to surge. This made buying kimchi more favorable than making it at home, and the preference for packaged kimchi increased explosively, leading to a surge in demand for packaged kimchi. Imports of relatively inexpensive Chinese kimchi also increased.

Meanwhile, according to KREI’s survey on kimchi-making intentions, the proportion of people making kimchi themselves this year is 65.1%, up 1.8% from 63.3% last year. The proportion of kimchi-making by early November was 17.2%, lower than 20.6% last year, but the proportion by early next month was 74.6%, higher than 72.9% last year. The reason the kimchi-making season is expected to be somewhat delayed compared to last year is analyzed to be due to consumers’ intention to wait until kimchi-making costs stabilize before making kimchi.

On the 23rd, as the prices of kimchi-making vegetables such as napa cabbage and radish continue to soar, a notice about the sold-out status of some products due to heavy rain and typhoons is displayed at the packaged kimchi sales counter in a large supermarket in Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

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