Kimchi shortage: Cabbage crisis of national concern to South Korea
Kimchi, the favorite cuisine of South Korea, might be off the table this fall. Cabbage shortages in the country have caused a national crisis. Heads of cabbage now cost about $14 a piece as opposed to the earlier price of $4.
"Some restaurants are now charging extra for kimchi. Free kimchi along with one's meal is practically a basic human right in Korea," the Economist reports.
NPR puts the blame on "a freakish combination of cold temperatures in the spring, an extreme heat wave in the summer and torrential rains in September," which caused crops to fail.
"Koreans have taken to jokingly calling the side dish "geum-chi," substituting in the Korean word for gold," CNN reports.
However, the government has said the price will stabilize in time for the annual "kimjang" season in November, when kimchi is traditionally prepared and packed into giant pickling jars and buried in the ground to ferment during winter. The government has begun subsidizing foreign cabbage to lower the costs, though South Koreans have an aversion to imported kimchi.
Although this is a temporary solution, the year's "freakish" weather might not be so freakish in the coming years. David Easterling, chief of the Scientific Services Division at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climatic Data Center, said a direct effect of climate change will be much more rainfall; the hotter the air, the more moisture it holds.
So, get your kimchi fix while you can.
BlogPost - Kimchi shortage: Cabbage crisis of national concern to South Korea
lol
dem koreans gonna suffer
Kimchi is an essential part of EVERY meal