Tough Times for Kimchi

The economic downturn has made consumers tighten their belts in kimchi-making season. The grocery section of a department store offers cabbage, the main ingredient of the dish, at 800 won (0.60 U.S. dollars), 60 percent lower than the market average, but fails to attract as many customers as last year (right) when they lined up to get cabbage offered at 1,500 won (1.13 dollars), half the market average at the time.

sannae@donga.com