[imText1]This is a story of my experience in North Korea. My older brother got married in 1992 and many relatives got together to join the wedding ceremony. I wired telebrams to my uncle who was living in Pyonsung and relatives in Sineju to invite them to the wedding ceremony. After a couple of days, a cousin from Pyonsung called me and said that she will come to my place with a jeep.
All the relatives said that she is a real wheeler-dealer. She worked as a chief secretary in ‘No.8 farm’ which provides ‘foods for Kim Jong Il’. She always did something (special) whenever we had some important matters. (Also this time) she said that she will bring all foods needed for the ceremony.
She brought various kinds of sweets, apples, pears, grapes and mushrooms. When we saw he apples, we noticed that they are totally different as the apples in common markets. The size was almost same as a handball and the smell was really good.
All of us asked her “do we have this kind of apple in North Korea? Are they imported?” She quietly answered that “it’s the apple for Kim Jong Il and I could bring some here because they were rejected. Thanks to the rejected food, we can have a very nice wedding ceremony.”
No.8 farm, The private farm for Kim Jong Il
All of the “No.8 products” are ‘the foods for Kim Jong Il’. The party accounting Department gives a task to each farm and collects it. Like a human being is required to eat the five grains for his/her health, there are several farms which produce the five grains for Kim Jong Il. It is the No.8 farm.
‘Longevity institution (the institution which is in charge of Kim Jong Il’s health)’ makes a health care table for Kim Jong Il and report the best rice, water and other food for him to the party accounting Dept. After then, the accounting Department selects the “right lands” to grow each food and set up No.8 farm. It gives a task to each farm and asks them to produce not a lot of products, but small amount of quality products.
Before the No.8 products, there was No.9 products. It provided food for both Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at the same time. When Kim Jong Il arised as the successor in 1980’s, Kim Jong Il declined to get the products saying “No.9 should go to Kim Il Sung and I will take No.8”
That is why the accounting Department named No.9 for Kim Il Sung and No.8 for Kim Jong Il. It was just divided formally and requirement for No.8 products were as strict.
The No.8 farm is operated by the No.8 agricultural committee, the No.8 province agricultural committee and the No.8 army operating committee. All of them are controlled by the party accounting Department. All the farming materials are provided to No.8 farm, whatever it takes.
The best grain of rice and apples cultivated with sugar
The best area for rice shall be taken by the No.8 farm or is already taken by No.8 farm. The rice which is cultivated for the kings during Chosun Dynasty in Sukcheon and Munduk, is still cultivated as No.8 product. Products in No.8 farm are perfect green products because they use organic fertilizer and compost without using chemical fertilizer.
The farmers in the No.8 farm have a good family background and are earnest party members. All kind of grains such as glutinous rice, hulled millet, millet, Indian millet, sesame, red-bean and chestnut are cultivated in the No.8 farm. Cultivated rice is selected as same size at first and the farmers select again. Even small damage in rice shall be rejected.
Some of the grains go to Kim Jong Il and rest of them shall be distributed to his surroundings or shall be granted to the earnest party members.
In autumn, people from the accounting Department make a visit to each farm and collect cultivated grains. ‘Longevity institution’ tests them minutely before the grains go to Kim Jong Il.
According to my cousin, the fruit farm which she takes care of is in Sukcheon and Suncheon. She also told me that apples are cultivated with sugar and the party sends 30kg of sugar for each tree in spring.
They make an apple tree not to produce many apples. They go around to each tree in spring and cut most of flower buds to produce quality apples. The farmers in No.8 should make efforts to maintain apples as the best quality.
People in South Korea regard sugar as nothing because they can get it in a market easily, but when a child catches a cold in North Korea, his mother gives the child a spoon of sugar with hot water as ‘a valuable medicine’.
