“The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) suffers high levels of food insecurity. Its harsh climate, mountainous terrain and lack of farming mechanization limit agricultural production, which shows a declining trend across all crops. A drought in 2015 worsened the situation, resulting in a 11 percent reduction in harvests on the previous year. This has led to a substantial food shortage, which is compounded by political and commercial isolation and weather-related crises. According to the 2017 report on the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI), 10.3 million people are undernourished.
Many people suffer from chronic malnutrition due to lack of essential proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. Those living in towns and cities have worse diets, with many relying on rural relatives, improvised ‘kitchen gardens’ or market activities to supplement the food they receive through the Government’s Public Distribution System (PDS). The PDS consistently provides lower food rations than the Government’s daily target.” - world food programma
