Overview
South Korea's (Republic of Korea's) export-oriented economy
supports a relatively affluent society of 48 million people.
Rugged mountains
cover much of the country, leaving a relatively small arable land
area for food production. Rice dominates crop production and
has
long been the staple food. Production of vegetables, fruit, and
livestock grew over the last three decades, but Korea has turned
increasingly to food imports to satisfy consumers' demands for
greater food variety, lower prices, and convenience. South Korea
is among
the top ten markets for U.S. agricultural exports. Several trade
disputes reflect the country's strong drive for self-sufficiency.
ERS analyzes important aspects of Korea's food and agricultural
situation, its agricultural trade, and issues affecting U.S.
agricultural
trade.
Features
Where
Will Demographics Take the Asia-Pacific Food System? (June
2004) assesses the impact of expanded urbanization, variability
in population growth and immigration, and aging populations
on the Asia-Pacific food system. The ability of developing
countries to adjust to rapid urbanization will be the most
important demographic challenge, testing the region's capacity
to deliver a steady flow of safe, reasonably priced food.
Many factors determine the Structure of the Global Markets for Meat, (September 2003) including the relative availability of resources for raising and processing animals for meat. Countries' preferences for various cuts of meat provide opportunities for international trade. South Korea has been one of the largest markets for U.S. meat exports.
Structural Change and Agricultural Protection: Costs of Korean Agricultural Policy, 1975 and 1990 (April 2002) provides an overview of South Korea's agricultural policy goals and outcomes in a period of rapid economic development. Protection of agriculture skewed farmers' choices of crops and tended to keep labor in agriculture (and out of manufacturing and services), resulting in misallocation of resources. Despite the sharp decline of agriculture's importance in Korea's general economy, high import barriers continued, incurring greater costs to the economy in 1990 than in 1975.
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