“Where Has Koreans’ ‘Rice Power’ Gone?” Per Capita Rice Consumption Has Fallen to Half of 30 Years Ago

According to The Financial News, per capita annual rice consumption last year hit an all-time low.
On the 22nd, Statistics Korea released the results of the "2025 Food Grain Consumption Survey." The data showed that per capita annual rice consumption last year was 53.9 kilograms, down 3.4% (1.9 kilograms) from a year earlier. This is the lowest level since related statistics began in 1963.
Per capita annual rice consumption has been on a downward trend since 1985. Compared with 1995, when it was 106.5 kilograms, it has fallen to about half over the past 30 years. As annual consumption has declined, the amount of rice eaten per person per day has also decreased. Last year, average daily rice consumption per person was 147.7 grams, down 3.4% (5.2 grams) from the previous year. Assuming there are about 100 grams of rice in one bowl of steamed rice, this means each person now eats roughly one and a half bowls a day on average.
Overall grain consumption, including rice, also decreased. In 2025, per capita annual consumption of total grains (rice plus other grains) was 62.5 kilograms, down 3.0% (1.9 kilograms) from the previous year. This is about half the 117.9 kilograms recorded in 1995.
However, consumption of other grains did not decline. Per capita annual consumption of other grains was 8.6 kilograms, the same as the previous year. Consumption of legumes (1.9 kilograms), barley rice (1.6 kilograms), and mixed grains (1.5 kilograms) increased, while consumption of root crops decreased. The share of other grains in total grain consumption rose to 13.8%, up 0.5 percentage points from a year earlier.
In the business sector, however, rice consumption increased. Rice consumption in the food and beverage manufacturing industry was 932,102 tons, up 6.7% (58,739 tons) from the previous year. Rice consumption in food manufacturing was 658,262 tons, a 12.6% increase, while the beverage manufacturing sector used 273,840 tons of rice, down 5.2%. By industry, rice cake manufacturing accounted for the largest share at 28.3%, followed by distilled spirits manufacturing (23.2%), other processed ready-to-eat food manufacturing for meals (16.6%), and other grain-processed products manufacturing (6.5%).
junjun@fnnews.com Choi Yong-jun Reporter