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Household food spending falls to lowest level in nine years amid inflation

Published: 01 Sep. 2025, 17:28 Updated: 01 Sep. 2025, 18:58

A shopper buys groceries at a supermarket in Seoul on Sept. 1. [NEWS1]

Korean households cut back on food and non-alcoholic beverages in the second quarter of 2025, spending less in real terms than at any point in the past nine years. High prices, extreme weather and surging costs for processed foods drove the decline, even as nominal spending rose.

Data from Statistics Korea’s Kosis portal on Monday showed households spent an average of 422,700 won ($303) per month on food and non-alcoholic drinks in the second quarter, up 1.8 percent from a year earlier. Adjusted for inflation, real spending fell 1 percent to 341,100 won — the lowest since the second quarter of 2016.

The drop indicates that households spent more money overall but bought fewer goods because of higher prices.

Food and beverage prices rose 2.9 percent year-over-year in the second quarter, surpassing the overall consumer price index increase of 2.1 percent. Food companies raised factory prices after higher exchange rates late last year drove up the cost of imported raw materials.

Real food spending fell for four straight quarters starting in the fourth quarter of 2023, then increased by 1.8 percent in the fourth quarter of last year.

Growth slowed to 0.4 percent in the first quarter of this year and returned to decline in the second, as higher prices for processed foods pushed consumers toward cheaper alternatives, a trend described as “stingy consumption.”

Household spending on dining out showed only a slight gain. Real spending on meals outside the home reached 353,000 won in the second quarter, up 0.2 percent from a year earlier. That followed a 0.4 percent drop in the first quarter.

Food inflation has continued into the third quarter. Prices of processed foods remain high, while the summer’s extreme heat pushed up the cost of fresh produce. In July, prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 3.5 percent year-over-year.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY AHN HYO-SEONG [[email protected]]