As noted in previous parts of this series, official data indicates that the aggregate supply of food in North Korea this year is significantly down on the 10-year and five-year average.

Yet, rice market data gives a very different picture of the realities that consumers may face on the ground: the price of rice has been down on August 2009 prices in real terms for around the past 18 months.

Rice is a relative luxury in North Korea, however, and much of the population is believed to be reliant on corn. As a result, an analysis of