Koreans Break with Traditional Devotion to Rice
By wchung | 04 May, 2025

Koreans are eating less than half the rice they were eating a generation ago on a per capita basis, according to data released Thursday by Statistics Korea.

In 2012 Korea’s annual rice consumption per person was just 69.8 kg (153.9 lbs), about half of the peak of 135.6 kg (298.9 lbs) consumed in 1979.

That means the average Korean eats just 191.3 grams (0.43 lbs) or about 6.9 ounces each day. That’s about half a bowl of rice each meal. In 1972 each person averaged 368.6 grams of rice per day, or about a bowl per meal.

The rapid decline in Korean rice consumption comes at a time when rice consumption is actually increasing in the US and other western nations. Over the past quarter century one in five Americans has gotten into the habit of eating about a half a serving of rice per day on average, mainly as part of a healthier diet to help induce weight loss.

Ironically, in Korea many are shunning rice partly in order to cut down on fattening carbohydrates and eat more meats, dairy products and packaged foods. Yet another recent development that may accelerate the movement away from rice consumption in Korea is the discovery that rice contains high concentrations of arsenic, a known carcinogen.

For the world as a whole, per capita rice consumption increased by 40% between 1961 and 2002. By 2009 the world was eating 531,639 thousand metric tons of paddy equivalent (354,603 of milled equivalent). China led the world in rice consumption at 156,312 thousand metric tons of paddy equivalent comprsing about 29.4% of global consumption. India came in second with 123,508 thousand metric tons of paddy equivalent or about 23.3% of the world’s total.