South Korea: Farmers Fight Rising Production Costs

Rice farmers in South Korea are facing difficult times as they are pressured between decreasing income on one hand and ever rising production costs on the other.

According to South Korea's National Statistical Office (NSO), the production cost of rice per 10-acre paddy field stood at 607,354 won last year, up 1.2 % from the previous year. The cost of fertilizer grew notably by 8.7 % followed by farming tools at 7.2 % and pesticides by 5.5 %.

Rice production in South Korea totaled 4.5 million MT last year down 5.8 % from the previous year.