Food prices in Korea have grown at one of the fastest rates among developed countries over the past 12 months.

Figures released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show that Korea's food prices jumped over 6 percent in the year leading up to May, three times higher than the OECD average.

The increase was the third-fastest among the member states after Chile and Iceland, in that order. Experts here say the extremely dry weather and an ensuing spike in the prices of crops and vegetables caused the dramatic increase.