[News Terms] Troublesome and Expensive Cabbage Prices... Increase in 'Gimpo-jok'

Giving Up on Kimchi Making and Buying Store-Bought Kimchi
Causes Include Rising Cabbage Prices and Hassles
Online Scams Targeting Kimpojok on the Rise

The phenomenon of the 'Gimpo-jok' is spreading. Gimpo-jok is a newly coined term that stands for "Gimjang Pogi-jok," referring to people who give up making kimchi for the winter (Gimjang) and instead buy kimchi from the market. Various factors such as rising napa cabbage prices, an increase in single-person households and small households, the popularity of convenience foods, and limitations in time and labor for making kimchi have influenced the rise of Gimpo-jok.

Even during the peak Gimjang season, napa cabbage prices remain strong. According to the "November Leafy Vegetable Observation Report" by the Korea Rural Economic Institute, the cultivation area was recorded at 12,796 hectares, down 2.7% from the previous year, and due to high temperatures, the initial crop condition was poor, resulting in a 2.3% decrease in unit yield compared to last year. Accordingly, this year's autumn napa cabbage production is projected to be 1,180,371 tons, a 5% decrease from last year. The wholesale price of napa cabbage this month is around 8,000 KRW per 10kg, about half of last month's peak of 19,120 KRW. However, the Korea Rural Economic Institute expects it to be 24% higher than the 6,453 KRW at the same time last year.

Kimchi making scene
Photo by Yonhap News

Due to the soaring napa cabbage prices, many people are deciding to forgo making kimchi this year. According to the "Gimjang Plans and Packaged Kimchi Demand Survey" released last month by the monthly agricultural food subscription platform operated by Nonghyup, 9 out of 10 respondents agreed with the Gimpo-jok phenomenon. Additionally, 72% of respondents said, "I will not make kimchi this year." The most common reason for not making kimchi was "inconvenience (47.2%)." This was followed by "decrease in family members (37.6%)," "lack of time (33.1%)," and "rising prices of kimchi ingredients (30.8%)."

The demand of Gimpo-jok is shifting to the packaged kimchi market. Among those who decided not to make kimchi this year (72%), 88.7% said they plan to purchase packaged kimchi. Regarding purchase channels, 84.3% responded that they buy online, while only 9% use large supermarkets. The distribution industry is launching a wide variety of kimchi products in different sizes and types to capture the Gimpo-jok market.

Homeplus announced on the 10th that online sales of large-sized packaged kimchi surged last month. According to Homeplus's online sales data analysis, sales of packaged kimchi increased by 25% compared to last year. In particular, sales of the largest 10kg product soared 18 times compared to last year. The younger the age group, the more consumers bought packaged kimchi, and among the younger generation, sales proportions of convenient-to-eat sliced kimchi and radish kimchi were higher.

A post on a Naver Mom Cafe sharing experiences of kimchi purchase scams
[Photo by Naver]

There have also been groups exploiting the psychology of Gimpo-jok to commit "kimchi scams." They deceive customers by claiming to sell kimchi at prices cheaper than the market on online shopping malls or secondhand trading platforms, induce payment via bank transfer without a receipt, and then disappear. On online communities such as mom cafes, posts sharing scam victim cases and expressing grievances are increasing.

A fraudulent company impersonating the domestic travel site "Ttaengcheori.com" has also appeared. On the 1st, Ttaengcheori.com posted a notice on its homepage stating, "Recently, damage reports have been directed to travel agencies," and "The account in question is not our travel agency's account, and we do not sell agricultural or marine products such as kimchi."