North Korea farming remains one of the regime’s most persistent vulnerabilities, with chronic food insecurity rooted in poor soil, outdated infrastructure, ideological constraints on agricultural reform, and the ongoing tension between collective farming and the individual responsibility system. Daily NK covers North Korea farming through reports on harvest conditions, seasonal mobilizations, fertilizer and equipment shortages, agricultural policy directives from Pyongyang, and the ground-level reality facing farmers across the country’s provinces. Our in-country sources provide some of the most detailed and timely reporting on North Korea’s agricultural situation available in English.
Tag: farming
Pork prices near record 160,000 won per kilogram in North Korea
Pork has become one of the most expensive staples in North Korea since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, with prices now so high...
Satellite imagery shows reservoir drought worsening across North Korea
I analyzed satellite imagery from the European Space Agency's Sentinel satellites throughout August 2026. My goal was to assess the condition of major agricultural...
As won crashes, rural North Koreans rush to buy dollars
A growing number of people in rural North Korea are converting their spare cash into U.S. dollars or Chinese yuan, as fears grow that...
Satellite images show mine drainage nearing North Korea’s Kangnyong Bay
Satellite imagery shows yellow-tinted mine drainage spreading from North Korea's Bupo mine toward farmland and a saltworks in South Hwanghae province's Kangnyong county, with...
North Korea rice prices hit 17-year high as corn costs surge
Rice prices in North Korea climbed to their highest level since the country's 2009 currency redenomination in mid-August 2026, according to Daily NK's latest...
North Korea taps reserve grain stocks as farm workers in South...
North Korean authorities urgently released state reserve grain to farms in South Hwanghae province, the country's principal grain-producing region, after a growing number of...
North Korea codifies soil pollution law, but enforcement remains in doubt
North Korea passed a sweeping law in 2025 that regulates soil pollution from initial monitoring through investigation, cleanup and punishment of violators. The...
North Korea issues heat wave rules as deaths surpass 100
North Korea's Cabinet held an emergency meeting and issued a detailed set of heat wave guidelines after the death toll from heat-related illness surpassed...
North Korea farm workers caught between contradictory orders
Farm workers in North Korea are voicing complaints after getting caught between two contradictory directives amid record heat. One directive calls for preventing crop...
Hunger drives North Korean children to raid state orchards
Hunger is driving teenagers in Kwail county, South Hwanghae province, to sneak into state orchards this summer. They pick peaches and plums to eat...
