Food prices in South Korea are rising ahead of Chuseok, or Korean Thanksgiving, as reduced seafood catches, recurring high-temperature damage and stronger holiday demand constrain supplies. The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) said large chilled squid cost 5,210 Korean won per piece as of August 27, up 15.4% from a year earlier. Large chilled hairtail rose 7.8% to 14,171 won per piece, large frozen pollock increased 6.8% to 4,146 won, and imported mackerel climbed 31.6% to 11,606 won per handful. Squid production fell 28.7% year over year last month to 12,748 tons, while Norwegian-origin mackerel imports halved as local catch quotas declined annually. Farmed flatfish reached 22,800 won per kilogram in the third week of August, up 6.5% year over year. Agricultural products also rose: spinach reached 2,216 won per 100 grams on August 28, up 64.39% from a month earlier, while Napa cabbage and radish increased 34.05% and 25.59%, respectively. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries plans to release 20,000 tons of reserved seafood by September 27 to stabilize supplies.