Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I stopped by the market to get some oranges to pass around the staff room and I couldn't believe that W5,000 only got me nine oranges. In the supermarket some fruits are horribly expensive. Is there a shortage or were there crop failures or something?

[casey's moon]

Fruit is more expensive than usual right before Chuseok and as far as I know, oranges have always been very expensive here. Nice of you, though -- I'm sure they were appreciated.

[willardmusa]

It seems fruits are getting more and more expensive here at a rate much higher than other food items.

A lot of it comes from this "kuk san" campaign: They grow stuff in greenhouses here that could never normally be grown in Korean, and in seasons it certainly would not be growing here, then sell the fruit for outrageously high prices when compared to how much it would cost to just import the fruit from where it grows naturally. An example: dragon fruit from Vietnam. If they imported it, maybe they could get it for less than 500 won each and sell each for 1,000 won. Instead, it's grown in greenhouse here and sells for 9,000 won each.

The thing is, Koreans go for it -- simply because it is "kuk san". I've seen American and Chilean grapes selling for 500 won per 100 grams (still expensive considering what they sell for in other countries in Asia) and right next to them Korean-grown grapes - - of the same variety - int he middle of February - - selling for 1,700 per 100 grams. The American and Chilean ones are sitting there getting over-ripe and the Korean ones are being snapped up !

Alas, I can recall when one single banana was 1,000 won in Korea, and that was when the exchange rate was around 700 to 1. So, that's about US$1.35 for one banana ! (And that was when the per capita GDP was around $8,000). Yeah, guys would buy their date a banana to show how much they loved and could provide for her ! {{Bananas were being grown on Cheju at that time and the growers, funneling big money into the right pockets, were protected big time by high tariffs on imported bananas, allowing them to sell their own for the same price but at huge profit.}}

[kat2]

Are you talking about the Jeju oranges, the gamgyul? I think they will drop in price after Chuseok. Also, its the beginning of the jeju orange season, so these are some of the first to really come in. Give it another few weeks and they should be cheaper. I hope so anyway, I usually go through about 6 or 7 per day when they are in season.

[eamo]

When was any fruit or veg cheap here?