North Korea's stark grain price disparity ignites public outrage

In North Korea, controversies related to differences in grain prices are growing. Outrage is being fuelled by the huge discrepancy between the prices different social groups must pay for food. The general population pays about 100 times more than officials, who receive food at prices set by the state.

The government price for a kilogram of rice is 46 KPW (around £0.03), while state-owned grain stores sell rice at a price more than 88 times higher, that is, 4000 KPW (approximately £2.77) per kilogram - reports the North Korean portal Daily NK.

Residents of North Korea complain that the Workers' Party is extorting money from them and "treating people like idiots." The significant price difference is attributed to the socialist system. Party and government officials have become a privileged group, which is increasingly evident in the food distribution system.

The cornerstone of the North Korean socialist system is grain rationing. The state distributes food rations to individuals through their workplaces.

Daily NK reports that Workers' Party employees, courts, prosecutors, military, police, and security agencies receive grain at state prices. Moreover, the state forces farmers to sell grain to the government at artificially low prices, which cuts into the income of farms.

Source: Daily NK