Sesame seeds whose production base has been severely damaged due to extreme weather damage in 2020. Currently, the self-sufficiency rate has fallen from 15% to 10%, but thanks to this year's good harvest, expectations are high for a recovery in production ahead of the full-scale harvest at the end of August. However, in this situation, there are concerns that the domestic production base will shrink again as the government promotes the expansion of sesame TRQ imports for the sake of price stability. The photo is a sesame field in Buyeo, Chungcheongnam-do, in early August. Harvested sesame seeds do not immediately turn into sesame seeds. Farmers must go through processes such as drying, whisking, and sorting after harvest. In particular, unlike perilla, the post-harvest treatment process for sesame is difficult, as the harvested sesame must not be exposed to rain. The photo shows the sesame harvested at a sesame farm in Buyeo being dried on the 6th, and the frequent rain these days is just as unwelcome to the sesame farm as the news of the TRQ increase. The government increased the sesame TRQ (low tariff quota) import volume by 3,000 tons from the original 64,000 tons to 67,000 tons this year. In the field, there is concern that such a measure to expand imports will have more side effects, such as further shrinking the domestic sesame production base, which is barely recovering from the damage caused by the abnormal climate that occurred in 2020, rather than contributing to stabilizing the 'table price'. Domestic sesame production in 2021 is about 10,000 tons, and the self-sufficiency rate has fallen from 15% in the past to 10%. TRQ income increase, policy effectiveness is low The amount of sesame TRQ, which is subject to a 40% tariff, is on the rise during the corona crisis. It is growing to 54,000 tons in 2020, 64,000 tons in 2021, and 67,000 tons this year. Quantities not subject to TRQ are subject to 630% duty. Here, the duty-free (0%) import volume is fixed. Due to the entry into force of the Korea-China FTA, there are 24,000 tons of duty-free sesame imported every year, and although it is not a 'sesame' item, the amount of 'fried sesame powder' (sesame powder), a processed product used in sesame oil, is also 36,000 to 40,000 tons annually. . This sesame powder is 1.5 to 2 times cheaper than imported sesame seeds, making it the main raw material for sesame oil products made by large companies. For this reason, there are many views that the expansion of sesame TRQ imports will not lead to a decrease in the price of sesame oil products sold on the market. The CEO of Company A, which has been importing and distributing sesame seeds for over 20 years, said, “Although it is very unusual for the government to increase the TRQ operation plan in the middle of the beginning of the year, it is very unusual to take measures without communication with distributors and manufacturers who are well aware of the market situation. He said, “I agree with the purpose of price stabilization, but I have doubts about whether the actual consumer price can go down due to the structure of the sesame oil market.” The official said, “The sesame oil products made by three large companies, including Ottogi, CJ CheilJedang, and Sajo Haepyo, are already producing sesame oil products at the lowest price because they use roasted sesame powder instead of sesame oil to make sesame oil products. It is possible to make whole sesame oil with sesame oil, but I don't think it will have a big impact on the price of sesame oil on the market in reality because the price competitiveness is low in the market." According to multiple officials in the sesame import and distribution industry, the import price of sesame powder is around 3,000 won per kg. On the other hand, Indian and Nigerian sesame seeds are 5,000 won per kg, and Chinese sesame seeds are 7,600 won per kg. Sesame seeds from India, which will be affected by the increase in TRQ volume, can be expected to have the effect of lowering it to the KRW 4,000 level. In other words, the TRQ import policy is highly likely to act as a side to lowering the price of Chinese or domestic sesame used in small and medium-sized enterprises, restaurants, and mills rather than lowering the price of sesame oil products from large corporations. According to the '2019 Processed Food Segmentation Market Status' published by the government, the size of the sesame oil retail market was 104 billion won as of 2018. Based on 2018 sales, Ottogi (51.3 billion won), CJ Cheiljedang (38.7 billion won), and Sajohaepyo (8.5 billion won) account for 85% of the market share. However, the proportion of retail channels is only 30%, and the remaining 70% is distributed by food manufacturers and restaurants. It is difficult to accurately capture sesame oil from traditional markets or mills used for home consumption, so the market size is much larger than official statistics. The industry sees it as An official from importer B said, “Large milking companies use sesame meal as a raw material, so they have sufficient price competitiveness. The expansion of the sesame TRQ volume will affect the demand for mills and traditional markets that use whole sesame oil, which do not have sufficient milking facilities. It is unclear whether this will lead to Income expansion, negative impact on recovery of the collapsed self-sufficiency rate Cold water in the field struggling to recover after the self-sufficiency rate of 15% collapsed due to the rainy season for more than 50 days in 2020 Concerns about accelerating the collapse of the production base by lowering the price of domestic sesame seeds Support and protection of producers must also be provided in order to promote a policy of unilaterally changing imports . There are widespread concerns in the field that the expansion of sesame imports will be a big negative for the poor domestic production base. The common opinion is that it cannot be seen as a fundamental measure to solve the shortage of domestic sesame seeds, which is caused by a low self-sufficiency rate. In particular, there is a sense of crisis as the domestic sesame production base is recovering due to a significant decrease in production due to damage from the summer rainy season for more than 50 days in 2020, two years ago. Until just a few years ago, the self-sufficiency rate was maintained at around 15%, but the current self-sufficiency rate is around 10% (1990 tons of production in 2021), making the production base worse. Kim Seong-eop, an agricultural researcher in the field crop development department at the National Academy of Food Sciences, said, “The domestic self-sufficiency rate has been maintained at around 15%, but after the production base collapsed significantly due to the damage from the rainy season that lasted for more than 50 days in 2020, domestic production is gradually recovering in 2021 and 2022.” “This year is a very important time in the production sector whether we can keep the old self-sufficiency rate of 15%, or whether it will take longer to recover,” he said. He said, “The domestic sesame production base is poor. It is very difficult to maintain a self-sufficient base due to the fact that there are mostly elderly and small farmers, the mechanization rate is very low, there are no full-time farmers, and many are planted in double-cropping and complex farming,” he said. We understand,” he added. It is not only the recent abnormal climate that has disrupted the domestic sesame production base. The sesame oil market is growing with trends such as home-cooked food, K-food, and well-being, and imports with price competitiveness are replacing domestic sesame seeds thanks to an increase in sesame imports. As a result, the vicious cycle of domestic shortages is repeated. In particular, in the past two years, the shortage of domestic production due to the deterioration of the production base has worsened. According to the sesame farms in the region where the harvest is in progress in August, the price to trade with sesame oil companies is expected to be around 25,000 to 28,000 won per kg, which is twice as high as the 14,000 won in 2019. Due to this influence, small but positive changes are taking place one by one, such as producing sesame as a full-time job in the production area or forming a crop group in the production area. However, as the government's import policy, which relies on imports such as TRQ, has recently raised its head again whenever supply and demand instability increases, the sense of disappointment in the production area is growing. Yoon Sang-don, a full-time sesame farmer in Cheongyang, Chungcheongnam-do, said, “I fully understand the purpose of increasing supply for the purpose of price stabilization. That is the problem,” he pointed out. Mr. Yoon Sang-don also said, "As the sesame stockpiles of distributors increase, in the future, in terms of price negotiations, farmers are inevitably drawn to the companies. It is impossible to guarantee whether domestic and imported sesame oil is used in a mixture, and if there is no measure to prevent market disturbances such as crackdowns on this, if the import-oriented policy continues, the collapse of the sesame production base will be accelerated. Measures should be implemented together.”