'With Spinach Prices Soaring 90%, Gyeonggi Province Launches Climate-Responsive School Meals with Frozen Seasonal Spinach'

Gyeonggi Province is moving forward with a plan to proactively respond to agricultural production instability caused by climate crises such as heatwaves, by freezing crops harvested in season and supplying them during periods of price surges.

On July 21, Gyeonggi Province announced that starting in August, it will pilot the supply of 2 tons of eco-friendly frozen spinach to schools participating in the "Eco-Friendly and Excellent Agricultural Products School Meal Support Program."

Gyeonggi Province explained that, as a preemptive measure, it has been freezing spinach harvested in season this year, taking into account the severe difficulties faced by school meal services last year due to a sharp rise in spinach prices caused by abnormal high temperatures. This year as well, with major agricultural product prices soaring due to heatwaves, the price of spinach has increased by more than 90% within a month.

Gyeonggi Province held a quality standards council meeting to discuss supplying seasonally stored spinach to school meals in response to the price surge. Provided by Gyeonggi Province

Accordingly, Gyeonggi Province decided to proceed with the first pilot supply project of frozen spinach after discussing the establishment of school meal supply standards through the "Quality Standards Council."

Going forward, Gyeonggi Province plans to actively pursue the strategy of freezing and supplying, as needed, agricultural products that are likely to experience repeated growth instability due to abnormal weather conditions.

Park Jongmin, Director of the Department of Agricultural, Fisheries and Life Sciences of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "This supply is significant not only as a simple provision of frozen agricultural products, but also as the first case of applying 'eco-friendly agricultural product quality standards' tailored to the climate environment." He added, "Under the vision of 'climate agriculture policy,' we will continue to actively promote policies that enhance the sustainability of agriculture and contribute to climate justice through public meal services."