Food Aid Crucial to North Korea

August 1, 2001

A spring drought that lasted in many places more than three months has aggravated the already precarious food situation in North Korea, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) said in a joint special report. The two Rome-based agencies warned in the report in order to avert further hardship, food aid is "imperative," and they urged the international donor community to immediately provide more food to the country.

According to the report, the drought's effect on domestic food production is expected to have "dire consequences for the food security of the population" prior to the autumn harvest of the main rice and maize crops. The report is based on the findings of a joint crop and food supply assessment mission conducted from June 23-July 3. A protracted dry spell between March and mid-June - the longest spring drought on record for many parts of the country - depleted rivers and reservoirs and crippled irrigation systems.

It delayed planting, forced the abandonment of large tracts of cultivated farmland, and drastically reduced agricultural yields. "About 10% of the planted area was estimated to have been abandoned and yields from the remaining areas were well below normal. Wheat and barley yields dropped to 0.85 tons per hectare against the usual 2 tons/ha, while potato yield was reduced to 3.77 tons/ha against the recent past average of 10 tons/ha," the report stated. "The production of these winter and spring crops, estimated at 172,000 tons, was sharply below the expected output of about 493,000 tons."

As a result, WFP and FAO said the North Korean government's Public Distribution System planned to reduce the individual daily ration to just 150 grams for the remainder of the 2000-01 marketing year (November/October), from the 215 grams provided during the last eight months. The two agencies further warned that the cooperative farms which account for the bulk of domestic production might not be able to supply the distribution system with enough food to help it meet even this target.

Besides reducing the spring harvests, the pervasive drought degraded planting conditions for the main cereals and potato crops. "Some 45% of the maize (corn) crop was affected," the report said. The paddy (rice) crop appeared to be generally in good condition, however.

As a result of the smaller winter/spring season wheat, barley and potato harvests - traditionally vital sources of nutrition during the lean summer months - FAO and WFP reduced their previous estimates for the total production of cereals and potatoes in 2000-01 from 2.92 million tons to 2.57 million tons.

Taking into account the food grain imports contracted and food aid already delivered or pledged by donors, the country faces at present a significant uncovered food deficit of 564,000 tons for the remaining four months of the 2000-01 marketing year.

"With the winter/spring harvest seriously reduced and the new harvest several months away, additional imports and food assistance until the end of October will be imperative to avert further hardship," the agencies said. "Any significant shortfall in aid would pose a threat of a deepening food crisis in the country next year."

Given the unfavorable prospects for the main harvest in October, a large volume of food aid and concessional imports also is expected to be required in 2002.