Browse Data and Analysis

On November 13, 2018, Statistics Korea (KOSTAT) released its revised 2018 rice production estimate of 3.868 million metric tons (MMT), slightly down from 3.875 MMT, the initial rice production....

Korea relies heavily on imports to fulfill its food and agricultural needs. Korea maintains a strong food processing industry that manufactures a wide variety of food and beverage products.

In Marketing Year (MY) 2018/19, heavy rains during the planting season caused farmers to opt out of the government program to reduce rice acreage and continue planting rice.

As actual rice planting area was less than FAS/Seoul had estimated in the last report, the rice production forecast for MY 2018/19 is revised down to 3.73 million metric tons (MMT).

Total production of grain and other crops on a grain equivalent basis is estimated at 5.75 million metric tons (5 MMT, milled basis for rice and grain equivalent for soybeans) in marketing year....

Korean rice production is forecast to decrease in MY 2018/19 as the government’s rice reduction program takes effect.

Korea continues to meet its mandatory import volume of 408,700 metric tons (MT) from Most Favored Nation (MFN) countries, with purchases of 138,610 MT (milled) from the United States in CY 2017.

On December 26, 2017, Korea issued an updated list of adjustment tariffs and voluntary tariff rate quotas (TRQs) for certain agricultural, forestry and fishery products....