North Korea’s Kwangchon Chicken Farm, praised in state propaganda as a beacon of food security, is instead underscoring the disparity between governmental pledges and economic actualities. Despite being touted in nationwide lectures as a testament to Kim Jong Un’s dedication to modernization and enhanced living conditions, the farm’s produce continues to be a luxury that many citizens promptly trade at markets to secure essential goods.
According to a source in North Hwanghae province recently, Kim Jong Un is credited with personally overseeing the development of Kwangchon Chicken Farm, which is being promoted as the national benchmark for modern poultry production. Lecture materials claim that he directed every aspect of the project to boost meat and egg supplies for civilians and military.
“If modern chicken farms like this appear one-by-one in Pyongyang and every province, all families will be able to eat chicken or eggs whenever they want,” the materials claim.
The source told Daily NK, “The chicken and eggs from Kwangchon Chicken Farm are being distributed to key areas and workplaces, including Pyongyang and munitions factories, neatly packaged as ‘gifts of affection from the supreme leader.’ While some locations have received these products from Kwangchon Chicken Farm, they are provided as single-occasion offerings.”
However, the provisions have been insufficient for subsistence, prompting people to sell their chickens and eggs at the market in exchange for essential daily goods and more necessary food items.
In one market in Sariwon, chicken currently sells for about 45,000 North Korean won per kilogram and eggs for about 1,500 won each.
Chicken is more expensive than pork, and two eggs cost about the same as a kilogram of corn, so people universally sell what they receive from Kwangchon Chicken Farm on the market.
This being the case, propaganda about “substantive changes in resolving food, clothing and housing issues” is over-optimistic based on the premise of “erecting modern chicken farms one-by-one in Pyongyang and each province,” the source said.
The source told Daily NK that the lecture materials are often met with laughter for their lack of realism, as chicken and eggs are considered delicacies only seen on special occasions such as holidays.
He stated, “Many are silently optimistic that their supply of chicken and eggs will arrive shortly, given that the Kwangchon Chicken Farm yields hundreds of thousands of tons of poultry and millions of eggs annually—a significant quantity.”
During a visit with his daughter Kim Ju Ae in early 2024, Kim Jong Un praised Kwangchon Chicken Farm as a showcase of modernization, highlighting its automated production systems. He declared the facility exemplifies the Workers’ Party’s vision and sets the standard for all sectors pursuing technological advancement.
Daily NK works with a network of sources in North Korea, China, and elsewhere. For security reasons, their identities remain anonymous.
Please send any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
November 08, 2024 at 05:56AM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)