RICH WINTER HARVESTING OF SPINACH

[Anchor Lead]

Farmers in Namhae in southern Korea have started harvesting the spinach, a lucrative winter crop. The region suffered relatively little damage from typhoons this year, more than doubling the initial harvest amount.

[Pkg]

A spinach field stretches against the backdrop of the sparkling South Sea. Farmers have started harvesting spinach, the Namhae region's most famous winter specialty crop. An elderly couple quickly gather heaps of fresh spinach.

[Soundbite] LEE YEONG-SUK(SPINACH FARMER IN NAMHAE) : "We sowed the seeds before the typhoon. Luckily, we have a good harvest and we get good prices for our spinach."

Having withstood the strong sea winds, Namhae spinach is known for its sweetness and reddish roots. The spinach cultivation area in Namhae-gun County measures roughly 930 hectares, accounting for 19% of the nation's total spinach-growing areas and 13% of South Korea's overall production of the crop. A ceremony wishing for a bumper crop was held to kick off the spinach harvesting season. There wasn't much spinach available for auctions last year due to typhoon damage. But this year, the shipment volume has more than doubled. The price was set at 2,580 won per kilogram, which isn't as high as last year, but it's not a drastic decline.

[Soundbite] RYU SEONG-SIK(LEADER, SAENAMHAE AGRICULTURAL CO-OP) : "This year's harvest is much better than last year's. Because seeds were sown after the typhoon, the spinach didn't suffer from diseases or pests and they are of high quality."

Still, farmers are affected by a dramatic fall in output prices, from 23.7 billion won in 2017 to 16.1 billion won last year.

[Soundbite] JANG CHUNG-NAM(NAMHAE MAYOR) : "Price drop from a bumper harvest is a problem. But Namhae County will launch all-out promotional efforts to stabilize the prices."

The Namhae spinach that survived the strong sea winds will continue to be harvested until next March.