[Welfare Advanced Nation 2030-Part 2] ① "Meal Cards Cheaper Than Restaurant Prices... Heading to Convenience Stores Again Today"

Socially Vulnerable Blind Spot Series - Children Cold in Winter
300,000 Children Facing Food Insecurity
Child Meal Card Supports 7,000~8,000 KRW per Meal
Despite Diversified Usage, 4 out of 10 Rely on Convenience Store Ramen and Gimbap

Editor's NoteIs South Korea a developed country? In the 'Welfare Advanced Country 2030' project, which was prepared to explore the 'direction of a developed country' through National Assembly legislation, following the previous 'Part 1 - People with Developmental Disabilities' episode, this time we covered 'children suffering from food insecurity' and 'children aging out of care (youth preparing for independence).' We examine the winter of children who have to worry about every meal during school vacations when school meals stop, and the winter of children aging out of care who must face adulthood unprepared after leaving child care facilities. We also seek legislative and response measures at the National Assembly level.

On the last experiential learning trip before graduating middle school, Minjeong (pseudonym, 16 years old) went to an amusement park. After riding the rides, she swallowed hard, leaving behind friends who wanted to buy snacks. The price of a tteokbokki set was 11,000 won, and ramen cost 6,000 to 7,000 won each, which was burdensome, so after hesitating, she picked up a chicken skewer. She barely took out 4,500 won from the money her father, who is scheduled for surgery next month, gave her, saying, "Don't worry about money, buy whatever you want to eat." The 7,000 won that Minjeong can use to buy 'one meal' with the child meal card seems like a luxury even now when thinking about the 4,500 won chicken skewer.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Minjeong, a third-year middle school student living in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, is a child suffering from food insecurity belonging to a single-parent household with only her father and a basic livelihood security recipient family. Minjeong's father, who has epilepsy and a knee condition, is scheduled for surgery in December. Previously, he occasionally worked as a day laborer controlling vehicles at construction sites, but due to the surgery, his income has stopped, and he is even on the verge of breaking the savings he had been setting aside for Minjeong's academy fees in high school.

Although she is at an age when she would want to eat many things, Minjeong's meals for the rest of the day besides school meals are just kimbap and ramen bought at a convenience store at 5 p.m. There is no consideration for nutrition. The child meal card provided by local governments to children suffering from food insecurity allows up to 7,000 won per meal, but there are no menu options at restaurants within that price. Although the amount was raised to 8,000 won since last August, she cannot even buy two chicken skewers sold at the amusement park.

Her father worries about Minjeong being left alone when he is hospitalized for surgery. Currently, the meal card, which is calculated at 7,000 won per meal and supports about 150,000 won per month, increases to about 240,000 won during vacations, so there is no problem solving meals, but it is impossible to eat as nutritiously as home-cooked meals. Minjeong's father said, "I can cook egg soup or seaweed soup at home by myself, but since the meal card cannot be used to buy those ingredients, she will probably just buy kimbap and ramen at the convenience store every time," expressing his regret.

"It would be best if she could buy meals at restaurants that are most similar to home-cooked meals, but do children go to eat alone at restaurants? They feel self-conscious, but more than that, finding restaurants that accept the meal card is a hassle."

Minjeong's father said, "There are more than 10 Chinese restaurants in the neighborhood, but only one accepts the meal card," adding, "I tried to order jajangmyeon, but even that place only delivers for orders over 10,000 won, so it's hard to eat jajangmyeon."

On days when she wants to eat jajangmyeon, she orders fried dumplings together to reach the 10,000 won minimum. When she orders and pays over 10,000 won like that, the amount she can use the next day decreases because she has already spent it in advance. With prices continuously rising, she said she usually runs out of the monthly meal card budget by around the 17th of each month.

Child meal support cards provided by local governments for children facing food insecurity can be used not only at convenience stores but also at regular restaurants. However, many restaurants still do not accept them, making their use limited. Although support funds of 7,000 to 8,000 won per meal are provided, the basic payment unit is 10,000 won, so ordering delivery of dishes like jajangmyeon is not easy.

"If it could be used at places like supermarkets, I think she would buy ingredients and cook at home instead of spending on expensive convenience store food."

Minjeong, who is most confident in cooking egg dishes, hinted that if the child meal card, currently limited to some restaurants and convenience stores, could be used at large supermarkets, it would be great to shop for a week's worth of ingredients on weekends. Minjeong's father expressed regret, saying, "Even buying one bottle of milk at a convenience store is 1.5 times more expensive than at a supermarket," and "Just buying eggs would allow her to cook various dishes at home." Although eggs can be bought at convenience stores, the problem is that they are 'boiled eggs.'

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as of 2021, there were 302,231 children suffering from food insecurity in South Korea like Minjeong. Compared to 426,594 in 2015, the number decreased by more than 120,000 over six years. Although it seems to have decreased significantly, this is a misconception caused by the 'absolute number.'

Looking at the population by age from Statistics Korea, the number of children under 19, the age group to which children suffering from food insecurity belong, decreased from 9.6 million in 2015 to 7.9 million in 2021. In terms of proportion within the total comparison group, children suffering from food insecurity accounted for 3.8% in 2021, meaning that 3 to 4 out of every 100 children (4.4% in 2015) still do not have proper meals.

Fortunately, voices demanding the expansion of child meal card support and diversification of usage places are emerging mainly in the political sphere, and recently some local governments have raised the amount. However, in the field, it is emphasized that policies should be made more carefully by considering the quality of meals, nutritional status, and linkage with care education along with increasing support amounts.

Gowan-seok, head of the Child Rights Advocacy Team at Good Neighbors, said, "The meal support amount for children suffering from food insecurity is a problem, but we need to look at what and how our children are eating," adding, "Statistics show that over 40% of the usage is at convenience stores, but we need to examine whether growing children who need to consume nutritious and balanced meals can be sufficiently supported by convenience store food."

He emphasized, "We need to see whether our society is providing sufficient care services for children, not just approaching this issue as a matter of meals but also considering care and health together." He added, "Growing children actually need to be told 'eat as much as you want,' but it is regrettable that they are told to eat only 7,000 or 8,000 won worth of food." He continued, "In 2022, compared to the 1970s and 1980s, we need to reconsider 'food insecurity' in a society where it is right not just to provide simple meal solutions but to allow children to consume healthier and more diverse foods."