Extreme heat spreads damage across farming and fisheries as crop insurance emerges as price buffer

As daytime highs approach 40 degrees Celsius, extreme heat is rapidly widening damage across South Korea's farming and fishing sectors. High sea temperatures have killed 450,000 farmed fish, while reports of heat-related livestock deaths filed with insurers have surpassed 688,000 head. Amid growing concern that the combined heat and drought could undermine the agricultural production base, analysts say crop disaster insurance does more than compensate individual farmers — it also prevents output declines and sharp rises in food prices.

According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, 450,000 farmed fish had died nationwide from high sea temperatures as of Thursday, with losses tallied at 1.05 billion won ($737,000). Flounder accounted for the largest share at 203,000 fish, followed by rockfish at 141,000, starry flounder at 73,000 and mullet at 33,000. The damage has been concentrated in recent weeks as the heat wave intensified.

High-water-temperature warnings are currently in effect for 17 sea zones, with advisories issued for 10 more. An advisory is triggered when water temperatures reach 28 degrees Celsius; a warning is issued when temperatures stay at or above that level for three or more consecutive days. As water temperatures rise, dissolved oxygen in the sea decreases and farmed fish lose immune function, raising the risk of mass die-offs.

The ministry raised its disaster response level to "Serious I" on July 30 and has been operating an emergency task force since then. It has committed 9.4 billion won to distributing high-water-temperature countermeasures — including liquid oxygen supply systems, deep-water intake devices and shade screens — a 62 percent increase from last year. To reduce stocking density, authorities released 170,000 farmed marine organisms in emergency operations, and early harvesting of vulnerable species such as flounder and rockfish is being encouraged through discount sales promotions.

Oceans and Fisheries Minister Hwang Jong-woo convened an emergency task force meeting on Wednesday and called for stronger on-the-ground responses, including the operation of liquid oxygen supply systems and emergency fish releases. Vice Minister Nam Jae-heon visited fish farms in Taean, South Chungcheong Province, on Thursday to review the situation firsthand. "We must minimize damage through swift responses at the scene," Nam said.

Losses on land are also mounting. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, about 688,000 livestock deaths from the heat wave have been reported to the livestock disaster insurance program. A total of 361 people working in rural fields, paddies and greenhouses have suffered heat-related illness, five of them fatally. Those figures are 79 percent and 42 percent, respectively, of the levels recorded during the same period last year, but officials say the intensity of this year's heat wave makes further damage difficult to rule out.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has deployed Korea Forest Service wildfire prevention drones and vehicles to help combat the rural heat emergency. Between July 29 and Tuesday, authorities conducted 236 public address broadcasts, 69 water-misting operations and 73 drone surveillance flights, issuing 47 recommendations to halt farm work and distributing 51 sets of heat-prevention supplies. Twenty-two wildfire suppression vehicles have been mobilized to address drought in southern regions, supplying 500 tons of water per day.

To reduce damage to crops and livestock, the ministry is also providing 68.7 billion won worth of preventive supplies — including cooling equipment, high-temperature stress relievers and heat-blocking coatings. Water tankers, water tanks and pumps are being deployed to water-scarce areas, and a mobile water delivery service that proactively visits vulnerable farms — not just those that apply — is being expanded.

Agriculture Minister Song Mi-ryeong said the government would mobilize all available resources in cooperation with relevant agencies to prevent heat illness among farmers and foreign workers and to protect crops, livestock and water supplies. "We will expand rural surveillance and on-site inspections and pursue proactive drought countermeasures to minimize damage to the agricultural sector," Song said.

The broader concern is that if heat and drought reduce output, the impact will extend beyond individual farms and push up consumer prices. Price-sensitive crops such as garlic and onions — whose prices swing sharply with changes in supply and demand — are particularly vulnerable: if their production base erodes, price volatility could worsen significantly.

A report by the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI), titled "Effects and Improvement Tasks of Agricultural Income Stabilization Policy," found that crop disaster insurance helps cushion such shocks. Researchers modeled a scenario in which neither garlic nor onion farmers had access to disaster insurance, then compared the results against actual production and price levels as a baseline. Insurance does not eliminate heat damage itself, but it prevents stricken farmers from abandoning cultivation or reducing planted area — thereby sustaining market supply.

Under the no-insurance scenario based on 2024 data, garlic cultivation area was estimated to fall from the actual 23,290 hectares to 22,623 hectares, a decline of 2.87 percent. Onion cultivation area was projected to shrink from 18,614 hectares to 17,689 hectares, a drop of 4.97 percent.

Output would follow suit: garlic production was estimated to fall from 285,000 tons to 277,000 tons, also down 2.87 percent, while onion production would decline from 1.175 million tons to 1.117 million tons, down 4.97 percent. Consumption was also projected to fall — by 2.43 percent for garlic and 4.35 percent for onions.

The supply contraction would translate directly into higher prices. The farm-gate price of garlic was estimated to rise from 4,381 won per kilogram to 4,969 won, up 13.40 percent, while the consumer price would climb from 8,356 won to 9,396 won, up 12.45 percent. For onions, the farm-gate price was projected to increase from 789 won to 878 won per kilogram, up 11.19 percent, with the consumer price rising from 1,789 won to 1,994 won, up 11.47 percent.

The findings illustrate how the absence of disaster insurance reinforces a chain reaction: shrinking cultivation area leads to lower output, which tightens supply and drives up prices. The dynamic is compounded by the fact that garlic and onion farmers can substitute one crop for the other from year to year, meaning an insurance gap for one crop can destabilize supply and prices for the other as well.

The report recommended that agricultural disaster insurance be designed not merely as a post-disaster compensation tool for individual farmers but as a comprehensive business safety net that stabilizes both agricultural production and market prices. "For crops that can substitute for each other, both must be covered by disaster insurance to stabilize the production base and market prices simultaneously," KREI researcher Kim Tae-hu wrote. "An insurance framework that accounts for linkages between crops is needed, rather than a crop-by-crop approach."