Per-capita consumption of rice, the key staple grain in the country, stood at 178.2 grams a day in 2014, a decrease of 5.8 grams or 3.2 percent from the previous year, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The figure more than halves a record high of 373.7 grams set in 1970.
The nation's per-capita rice consumption has shrunken for more than three decades since 1980.
On the other hand, per-capita consumption of other food alternatives, such as grains, soybeans, potatos, increased for the second consecutive year in 2014. It rose 7.4 percent on-year in 2104, the data said.
The increase was attributable to a rise in the number of people who are eager to improve their health, officials said.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
