Swapping apples for mangoes

Ripe apples are picked by a worker at an apple orchard in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province. — Korea Herald/ANN

SEASONAL fruits in South Korea could become vastly different in the following decades, as warmer temperatures will gradually reduce cultivable areas for popular fruit crops here. Apples, grapes and pears could slowly fade into the background, while tropical fruits such as mangoes and passion fruit take centre stage.

“We may not be able to see the change immediately. But, fruit crops that we will see at discount stores and traditional markets may change in the future. What we call seasonal fruits here may also change,” said Han Hyun-hee, a senior researcher at the Research Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, a unit under the country's National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science.