'집밥' 많이 먹는다...코로나 여파로 달라진 식탁

Social distancing means more people are eating at home.
Some consumers have been preparing their meals with ready-to-cook meal-kits as they look for variety and conveninence.
Some say, home cooking could stick even after life returns to normal post COVID-19.
Eum Ji-young has more.
Since the onset of the pandemic, Choi Hae-joung has been looking for easier ways to get meals on the table for her family.
One way she's found is ready-to-cook meal kits.
She says she orders them often these days because they offer a wide range of choices, they're convenient to cook, and because the virus has prompted her to stay away from crowded grocery stores.
"I order them online at least once or twice a week because we mostly eat at home as part of distancing in daily life, and the things I can make by myself at home are limited."
Many housebound consumers have made the same adjustment.
A survey of 1,000 people across the country was released in March by South Korean food giant CJ Cheil Jedang. According to the survey, about 83 percent of people are dining mostly at home,... up roughly 24 percentage points on-year.
Of the respondents, 46 percent said the outbreak has them buying more ready-to-cook meal kits.
"As many people in South Korea have been refraining from dining out due to the outbreak, demand and the price of some staple food items have been on a volatile ride."
As of Friday, according to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, the price of 100 grams of pork was about 1 U.S. dollar and 84 cents,... up roughly 14 percent from a year ago.
And the average price last month of a pack of 30 eggs was about 4 dollars and 36 cents,... the highest it's been so far this year.
"Prices have gone up. The price of food items like pork, eggs and vegetables have risen because they're so commonly used in our daily meals in daily lives."
It's widely expected that cooking at home, like some other lifestyle changes, could last beyond COVID-19 when life returns to normal.
Eum Ji-young Arirang News.