Garlic Cultivation Area Declines for Third Consecutive Year Due to Price Drop Impact

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyun-jung] Due to the decline in garlic prices last year, the cultivation area related to garlic this year has decreased by 14.4% compared to the previous year. Conversely, the cultivation area of onions, whose prices have risen, increased by 22.8% during the same period.

According to the '2021 Garlic and Onion Cultivation Area Survey Results' announced by Statistics Korea on the 23rd, this year's garlic cultivation area was 21,716 hectares, a 14.4% decrease from the previous year (25,372 hectares). The garlic cultivation area has decreased for three consecutive years since 2019 (27,689 hectares), after recording 28,351 hectares in 2018.

The biggest factor affecting the cultivation area is price. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), the average annual garlic price (wholesale, 1kg of commercial product) was 5,551 KRW in 2018, dropped to 4,255 KRW in 2019, and further fell to 3,741 KRW last year. As of 2021, the price has risen to 4,906 KRW. Garlic production increased from 330,200 tons in 2018 to 388,000 tons in 2019, then decreased again to 363,000 tons last year.

On the other hand, the cultivation area of onions showed an increasing trend due to rising prices. This year, the onion cultivation area was 18,014 hectares, an increase of 3,341 hectares (22.8%) from last year (14,673 hectares). The onion cultivation area had decreased for two consecutive years in 2019 (21,777 hectares) and last year after recording 26,425 hectares in 2018. The onion price (wholesale, 1kg of commercial product) was 819 KRW in 2018, dropped to 604 KRW in 2019, rose to 1,071 KRW last year, and has formed an average price in the 1,850 KRW range this year. Production was 1,521,000 tons in 2018, 1,594,000 tons in 2019, and 1,168,000 tons last year.