Warning of tomato-less hamburgers returns in four years

What's the price of a slice of tomato in a burger? These days, it's safe to say it's the same as a cup of coffee. Starting last week, McDonald’s Korea removed tomatoes from its burgers at some locations. Instead, they are offering a coupon for a free coffee. A slice of tomato is now worth the same as a cup of coffee. In reality, the price of tomatoes is skyrocketing. The retail price of a kilogram of tomatoes has recently been hovering around 13,000 won. Compared to the beginning of last month, the price has nearly doubled.

The disappearance of tomatoes from burgers is due to extreme weather. McDonald's Korea explained, "Due to the series of heat waves this summer, we are facing many difficulties in supplying tomatoes because of insufficient growth." The maximum growing temperature for tomatoes is 30 degrees Celsius. According to the Rural Development Administration, if daytime temperatures remain above 35 degrees Celsius, tomato fruit shrinks by a quarter. In Jangsu County, Jeonbuk Province, the main tomato-growing region in North Jeolla Province, the maximum daytime temperature exceeded 30 degrees Celsius on all but three days in August.

The reoccurrence of tomato-less burgers after four years has confirmed fears that the impact of extreme weather patterns is not a one-off. The 'golden apple' chaos, or extremely expensive apple prices, earlier this year was also attributed to a disastrous crop caused by extreme weather. However, as extreme weather becomes more frequent, apple-growing regions are shifting northward. With North Gyeongsang Province, the current apple-growing region, being affected by abnormally high spring temperatures, summer heat waves, and heavy rains, the government has decided to establish the cooler Gangwon Province as the future apple-growing region.

We're already seeing how extreme weather is changing crop production patterns around the world. Olive farming is becoming increasingly difficult in Sicily, Italy, an area considered ideal for growing olives 60 years ago. Average annual temperatures are rising, and rainfall is decreasing. Farmers have even introduced specialized cooling machines with temperatures nearing 40 degrees at harvest time. In Alaska, once considered inhospitable to farming, the number of farms has nearly doubled in the past 20 years due to longer "freeze-free" summers.

However, Korea’s approach hasn’t changed, as if extreme weather is merely unexpected. Last year, the government spent more than 1.7 trillion won buying surplus rice at high prices and selling back the rice it is obligated to import each year under a World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement at low prices. It was the highest expenditure since 2005, when the Public Stock Holding System was introduced. Meanwhile, the establishment of the Agriculture Climate Change Center, a dedicated agency to support climate change response policies and projects, has been delayed since its inception. Last year, the center spent less than 2.1 billion won of its budget, with 84 percent of it carried over to this year. Extreme weather, now a 'normal climate,' significantly impacts food production. If we don’t act quickly to keep pace with climate change, we’ll have to say goodbye to many more familiar flavors.