SEOUL: Food expenses for the lowest income class in South Korea rose nearly 40 per cent over the past five years as soaring food inflation placed a heavier financial burden on low-income individuals, Yonhap reported, citing government data on Sunday.
People in the bottom 20 per cent of the income bracket spent a monthly average of 434,000 won (US$300) on food in 2024, up 121,000 won, or 38.6 per cent, from 313,000 won in 2019, according to data from Statistics Korea.
South Korea’s overall household food expenses rose by 175,000 won, or 26.3 per cent, to an average of 841,000 won over the five years.
Those in the highest income group, in particular, spent 1.32 million won on food, up 27.1 per cent from 1.04 million won over the same period.
The rise in food expenses was driven by steep inflation in food prices in the country.
The food and beverage price index reached 122.9 in 2024, up 28.3 per cent from 95.8 in 2019, outnumbering the 14.8 per cent increase in South Korea’s entire consumer price index during the five-year period.
Moreover, the price index for food services, which includes restaurant and catering prices, rose by 22 per cent from 99.2 to 121 over the cited period.
Experts noted that the sharp rise in food prices has had a greater impact on lower-income individuals as they typically spend a larger percentage of their income on food compared with the higher-income group.
According to separate Statistics Korea data, those in the lowest income bracket spent 45 per cent of their disposable income on food, while the top-income group set aside only 15 per cent.
