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SEOUL (BLOOMBERG) – A series of typhoons in South Korea this summer has left the country stunned by a kimchi catastrophe.
Cabbage fields, which are generally seasoned with spices at this time of year and left to ferment for months to make South Korea’s favorite spicy dish, were razed across the country due to extreme weather, causing prices rose more than 60 percent.
“Cabbage prices are going crazy,” said Jung Mi-ae, a mother of two who usually chops up vegetables in the fall to make her own kimchi. “I had to rub my eyes to see the price again because it didn’t make any sense.”
In a typical year, South Korean households buy cabbages and other vegetables in bulk to make kimchi for the coming year, a season called “gimjang” and a tradition passed down through generations for more than a century.
But this year, the longest rainy season and three major typhoons triggered floods in August and September, damaging crops and disrupting supplies.
The nation’s fresh food prices rose 22 percent last month to their highest level since early 2011, according to Korea Statistics.
It is not just the homes that are suffering.
Daesang Corp, South Korea’s top kimchi producer, said it temporarily suspended online sales due to a shortage of cabbage.
CJ CheilJedang Corp, another major food company, said it is looking for alternative supplies to meet demand that is especially high this year as more people eat at home due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Cabbage in particular is quite sensitive to climate change and any kind of extreme weather will be detrimental to its production,” said Kim Dajung, a researcher at the Korea Rural Economics Institute. “While prices are starting to stabilize, uncertainties about the price will continue to persist until the gimjang season starts in mid-November.”
There is some hope.
The shortage of ready-made kimchi should decrease because recent favorable weather means cabbage prices will cool down, the agriculture ministry said.
That should bring some comfort to people like Lee Neung-hwa, a 64-year-old housewife whose kimchi refrigerator is starting to look empty.
Most homes in South Korea have a refrigerator specifically for seasoning to store their kimchi at the ideal temperature.
“Gimjang must continue,” he said. “However, at this price, that means less kimchi stew from now on.”
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