BLIGHTS TAKE OVER CABBAGE FARMS

[Anchor Lead]

With the annual kimchi-making season approaching, there are concerns that buying quality cabbages will be difficult. Following unusual heavy rains in the fall, a blight called bacterial soft rots has taken a toll on cabbage farms across the nation. The sudden arrival of cold weather is adding to cabbage farmers' woes.

[Pkg]

A vast stretch of cabbage fields. But they are all yellow as opposed to the usual green. Cabbage leaves lie low on the ground as if they have been melted. They have decayed and broken to pieces. Cabbages lie lifeless, rotten from the inside.

[Soundbite] "They have no roots. All of the cabbages are the same. (This cannot be called cabbage)."

Due to the unusual heavy rains this fall, a blight called bacterial sot rots has spread nationwide. the sudden cold weather in October has also added to the difficulty for farmers.

[Soundbite] Shim Chang-soo(Cabbage Farmer) : "Data shows this phenomenon has occurred nationwide. It is necessary to launch a probe and determine whether or not this is a disaster. This is not a situation farmers can handle on their own. The situation is similar in other fields."

[Soundbite] Choi Jang-hoe(Cabbage Farmer) : "Few of the cabbages can be sold. These roots have all rotted. Older farmers say this is the first time they've seen something like this."

The number of cabbage farmers suffering from the blight has increased over eleven fold in Chungcheongbuk-do Province alone, which is one of the nation’s major cabbage producers. The size of cabbage fields has also dropped some seven percent, compared to last year, leading to a drop in production. The phenomenon has reduced the harvest of cabbages. Their wholesale prices have jumped from 5,800 won per ten kilograms in mid-October to 7,300 won late last month. With the annual kimch-making season approaching, consumers are concerned about soaring prices of other ingredients, such as salt and chives.

[Soundbite] Han Eun-soo(Korea Rural Economic Institute) : "Cabbage prices are likely to increase, since farmers in Gangwon and Chungcheong region have been hit by the blight. They could rise 10 percent in November when the kimchi-making season begins."

The agriculture ministry has been working to devise emergency measures to bring down cabbage prices and stabilize the market. These include releasing 3,000 tons of cabbages from the government reserve and increasing supply.