WILD FOOD PLANTS IN SOUTH-KOREA - MARKET PRESENCE, NEW CROPS, AND EXPORTS TO THE UNITED-STATES

South Korean food markets were examined for the presence of wild-gathe red food plants between 1989 and 1995. One hundred twelve species belo nging to 83 genera and 40 families were found. Plants used as leafy ve getables were the most common (73.2%), followed by fruits (22.3%), roo t vegetables (6.2%) and flower foods (4.4%). Nearly half of these plan t species belonged to three families: Asteraceae (29) Liliaceae (10) a nd Apiaceae (7). As of 1992, 19 of these wild foods were also being gr own as new crops, a development that involved more than 25 000 Sawn ho useholds. Ar least eleven of these wild food plants were exported to t he United States in 1994, where they are sold by Korean food markets.