'Breadflation' impacts Korea as bagel prices rise 44 percent in three years

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'Breadflation' impacts Korea as bagel prices rise 44 percent in three years

Published: 09 Oct. 2025, 12:25 Updated: 09 Oct. 2025, 19:24

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Bread items are displayed at a bakery in Seoul on Sept. 12. [NOH YU-RIM]

The term “breadflation” — inflation driven by rising bread and pastry prices — is becoming a reality in Korea, with the price of bagels rising 44 percent over the past three years. Popular items such as salted bread and sandwiches also saw price hikes of more than 30 percent.

The best-selling bakery item in the first half of 2025 was salted bread, accounting for 15.7 percent of all bakery sales, according to a report published by Korea Credit Data (KCD). It was followed by sandwiches with 15 percent, white bread 7.2 percent, croissants 5.3 percent and bagels 5.2 percent.

An analysis of the median prices for the top 10 best-selling baked goods in the first half of 2025 showed that bagels now sell for between 4,400 and 4,900 won ($3.10 and $3.45), up 44 percent from June 2022. Sandwiches rose 32 percent to 7,500 to 8,300 won, while salted bread jumped 30 percent to between 3,300 and 3,700 won. Just two years ago, salted bread typically sold for 2,000 to 2,500 won. Today, prices above 3,000 won are standard.

According to the Bank of Korea’s Economic Statistics System, the consumer price index for bread rose 6.5 percent in August from a year earlier and 19.4 percent from June 2022. The price hikes for items such as bagels, sandwiches and salt bread were more than twice the average increase for bread overall.

Despite rising prices, bakeries and cafes are seeing declining profitability. As of June 2025, average monthly sales at bakeries fell to 9.07 million won, resulting in a net loss after a two-year slide, according to KCD. Expenses such as rent, ingredient costs and labor are now exceeding revenue. Monthly sales for tea shops, coffee shops and cafes averaged 7.24 million won, with net profits continuing to fall.

In one incident that drew backlash, a popular YouTuber Syuka tried to counter breadflation by selling salted bread and bagels for 990 won in August — but halted sales after one week following criticism from bakery owners who said the stunt sparked false accusations that they were overcharging customers.

The report also revealed a growing divide between franchise bakeries and independent ones. Large franchises saw higher sales indices and lower closure rates, while small independent bakeries had lower sales and were more likely to shut down.

The report analyzed point-of-sale and delivery app data from over 37,000 bakeries and 15,000 cafes and bakery cafes nationwide that use KCD’s Cash Note platform, covering the period from June 2022 to June 2025.

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 JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]