Share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. GDP per capita in Korea
Korea: Share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. GDP per capita was 34 percent in 2021. ▼ Falling
Share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. GDP per capita in Korea, 2001–2021
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in percent.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita in Korea is 34 percent, measured in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 21 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 20.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita in Korea peaked at 48 percent in 2001 and was at its lowest, 34 percent, in 2019.
That places Korea 127th out of 182 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.
Share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. GDP per capita in Korea, year by year
| Year | percent | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 48 percent | — |
| 2002 | 47 percent | -2.1% |
| 2003 | 46 percent | -2.1% |
| 2004 | 46 percent | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 45 percent | -2.2% |
| 2006 | 45 percent | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 44 percent | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 44 percent | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 44 percent | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 43 percent | -2.3% |
| 2011 | 43 percent | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 43 percent | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 40 percent | -7.0% |
| 2014 | 38 percent | -5.0% |
| 2015 | 36 percent | -5.3% |
| 2016 | 36 percent | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 35 percent | -2.8% |
| 2018 | 35 percent | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 34 percent | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 34 percent | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 34 percent | +0.0% |
Korea compared with similar countries
- Korea's 34 percent is above the median for high income countries, which is 31 percent, 1.1× the median. (60 countries reporting)
- Korea's 34 percent is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 45 percent, 76% of the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 45.44 percent | 44 percent | 48 percent | 9 |
| 2010s | 38.3 percent | 34 percent | 43 percent | 10 |
| 2020s | 34 percent | 34 percent | 34 percent | 2 |
Countries ranked near Korea
- 124 French Polynesia 35 percent compare
- 124 Malta 35 percent compare
- 124 Saint Lucia 35 percent compare
- 127 Colombia 34 percent compare
- 127 Montenegro 34 percent compare
- 127 North Macedonia 34 percent compare
- 127 Poland 34 percent compare
More energy & mining data for Korea
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -1.55 % change on previous year (2025)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0.0001 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fuel imports 25.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita in Korea?
- Share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita in Korea was 34 percent in 2021, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 48 percent in 2001.
- What is the lowest share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 34 percent in 2019.
- How does Korea rank for share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita?
- Korea ranks 127th out of 182 countries with data for 2021.
- Is share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 20.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of calories from cereals, roots, and tubers vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
A high share of calories from cereals, roots and tubers typically represents lower dietary diversity. GDP per capita is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.