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The banana, normally one of the cheapest and most readily available fruits, has become a rarity in just a year, with its price rising 41 percent during that time.
The wholesale price of 13kg of bananas purchased by a store was W19,800 (US$1=W1,364) in January, up from around W14,000 a year ago. The main reason behind the price hike is the weakening of the won. Korea imports all bananas sold in the country. As the won has yet to stabilize, the price is likely to remain high for the time being.
There are some unexpected factors to the rising price of bananas, however. One of them, the industry says, is a "banana diet" fad in Japan, which started after a Japanese pharmacist couple recommended two to three bananas for breakfast and normal meals for lunch and dinner to lose weight. This has reportedly caused growing demand for bananas in Japan and thus shortage of supply in Korea.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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