Mangoes are neatly stacked at a supermarket in Seoul. (Yonhap)

South Korea witnessed its highest-ever import figures for pineapples and mangoes in March, largely driven by the government’s recent efforts to address the soaring prices of homegrown apples by diversifying demand toward alternative options.

According to the Korea Customs Service on Tuesday, the import volume of pineapples reached 8,686 tons, worth $8.68 million, in March, up 44.7 percent from the previous year, marking a record high.

Imports of mangoes also more than doubled to 6,264 tons, worth $24.74 million, during the same period.

Other popular imported fruits such as bananas and oranges also saw surges in import figures to 38,404 tons and 38,000 tons, respectively.

The increased supply resulted in a decline in their prices. For instance, a pineapple was priced at 6,562 won as of Monday, marking a 9.9 percent decrease from March and a 7.7 percent decrease from a year ago.

The government has been expanding the supply of imported fruit since March as part of efforts to address soaring domestic apple and pear prices, as the two most popular fruits here.

In the meantime, the retail price of 10 apples was 25,017 won on average as of Monday, down 19 percent from March’s high of 30,877 won. Still, the price remains 9.9 percent higher than it was last year.

The price of 10 pears once again increased by 10 percent from March, reaching 47,110 won. Pear prices have constantly risen by over 73 percent, from 27,219 won last year.

By Hwang Joo-young (flylikekite@heraldcorp.com)
The Korea Herald