{"id":5913,"date":"2022-08-05T17:08:34","date_gmt":"2022-08-05T08:08:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=5913"},"modified":"2022-08-23T12:09:50","modified_gmt":"2022-08-23T03:09:50","slug":"provisions-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2022\/08\/society-economy\/provisions-1\/","title":{"rendered":"\uff1cInside N. Korea\uff1e Spread of anxiety among N. Koreans due to spiking food prices (1)\u2026White rice has spiked 45%... \u201cNo food is entering the markets\u201d\u2026The government\u2019s overzealous efforts are a major reason for the spike"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(FILE PHOTO) A man on a bicycle carries food purchased in a farming village on a bicycle into a city. Photographed in October 2010 in South Pyongan Province. North Korea currently heavily restricts people bringing food out of agricultural areas. (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

As food prices continue to climb in North Korea\u2019s provincial cities, along with gloom prospects for the future, many people are voicing their frustration. Following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in January 2020, most North Koreans have faced a significant drop in their incomes due to heavy government restrictions on economic activities. With the prices of food rising in the markets, there are a considerable number of people among the country\u2019s vulnerable classes who are facing starvation. (ISHIMARU Jiro \/ KANG Ji-won<\/em>)<\/p>\n

A female reporting partner in a city in Ryanggang Province told ASIAPRESS the following in late July about food conditions in the city:<\/p>\n

\u201cWith no money and the cost of food rising, everybody worrying about the future. Ordinary people eat one or two meals a day, and its not uncommon to see households that each just one per day. There\u2019s even families who are forced to eat just boiled corn. Now, households who can eat three meals of white rice a day are considered wealthy. When people cook meat, rumors spread through the neighborhood asking why this or that family has money and whether they are earning cash by doing something bad.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Based on a survey conducted by this woman and another reporting partner in a city in North Hamgyung Province on August 3, the price of white rice was 7,100 KPW, while corn went for 3,200 KPW (all per kilogram). The prices were an increase of 45% and 28%, respectively, since the beginning of this year.<\/p>\n

\u203b 1000 KPW=0.126 USD<\/p>\n

Why have prices risen so much?<\/p>\n

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(FILE PHOTO) A common dining table in an ordinary North Korean home. The center of the table has corn cooked like rice would be. To the right is a vegetable salad seasoned with soybean paste, and to the left is salt. Photographed by Chae Kyung-ok in Hyesan in March 2011. (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6 Lack of supply a major factor in rising prices<\/h2>\n

A major reason for the spike in prices is due to the lack of supply. Let\u2019s examine the reasons for this.<\/p>\n

1. The shutdown of the border due to COVID-19 led to a sharp fall in trade with China which, in turn, caused a long-term halt in the commercial import of foodstuffs.
\n2. The government\u2019s restrictions on food distribution have grown more and more restrictive, which has led to a sharp fall in the amount of food making its way from agricultural areas to city markets.
\n3. The pandemic has led to strong government restrictions on movement between different areas, causing significant congestion in the country\u2019s logistics network.
\n4. Until the fall harvest, there is no way to predict how much domestically-produced food will be circulated in markets.<\/p>\n

The fact that there are dire predictions about this fall\u2019s harvest is also causing anxiety among North Koreans. A reporting partner at a collective farm in North Hamgyung Province, who has long conducted surveys for ASIAPRESS, said:<\/p>\n

\u201cFarming activities were heavily delayed due to the domestic COVID-19 outbreak in May. Before that, there were severe shortages of fertilizer. The pitiful amount of rain that fell in June was also painful (to farmers). People are expecting that all farms will see a significant fall in crop yields in the fall. People are upset, remembering the starvation of the Arduous March period.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Map of North Korea ( ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6 The government is making every effort possible to stabilize prices<\/h2>\n

North Korean authorities, well aware of the spike in food prices, are doing all they can to stabilize them. Officials walk around markets to monitor the prices put up by food sellers, and are preventing hoarding by allowing consumers to only buy enough food for one person. The government is taking a hardline: Businesspeople who try to sell their items at overly expensive prices can even have their goods confiscated.<\/p>\n

The government is taking the same approach toward wholesalers. A reporting partner in Ryanggang Province gave the following account:<\/p>\n

\u201cAs part of efforts to crackdown on hoarding and black-market trading, The police are deploying mobile squads to man checkpoints where vehicles transporting food and their \u2018purchase orders\u2019 are checked. When it\u2019s not clear where the food has come from, the squads even confiscate the goods without compensation. One vehicle transporting food to give out to workers at a steel factory in Hyesan was pulled over at a checkpoint and almost had its entire load seized because (the officers) thought the driver was transporting goods purchased under-the-table.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Food sellers are adapting to this environment by staying away from markets and selling their products at home or directly with consumers. When stopped by officials, they make excuses, saying that the food is not being sold but rather for their own consumption.<\/p>\n

\u25c6 Government intervention is being criticized for causing spike in prices<\/h2>\n

Reporting partners told ASIAPRESS that this kind of government intervention is actually spurring a rise in prices. People can\u2019t buy the food they need for their families, and the heavy restrictions on distribution is leading to a spike in the cost of food.<\/p>\n

A reporting partner in North Hamgyung Province said that the authorities seem to be pushing a rise in food prices, explaining:<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve heard that we\u2019ve imported a large amount of food aid from China after June. It\u2019s obvious that the aid will be distributed to Pyongyang and the military first, but (the government\u2019s restrictions) have prevented any of it from arriving in the provinces. Trading companies have various kinds of foodstuffs in their possession, but they\u2019re prohibited from selling the products to wholesalers. That\u2019s why rice isn\u2019t getting into the hands of sellers and the markets are stagnated. The government is creating the conditions for the rise in food prices while making excuses about preventing hoarding and stopping the spread of COVID-19.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

(To be continued in the next installment)<\/p>\n

\u203b ASIAPRESS communicates with reporting partners through Chinese cell phones smuggled into North Korea.<\/p>\n

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