The nation could suffer from a shortage of rice by 2050 due to rising temperatures and increasing precipitation.
 
A forecast by the Korea Rural Economic Institute predicted that the rice self-sufficiency rate may gradually decline from 83-point-1 percent in 2010 to 47-point-3 percent in 2050.
 
The study also estimated that in 2050, the national gross rice output would reach one-point-81 million tons, compared to the two-point-89 million tons that could be produced without the effects of climate change.
 
The institute noted that a low rice self-sufficiency rate could lead to threatened food security resulting from a poor global harvest and a price surge in grains.