Today's Date:  Monday, July 16, 2012

1. GRAIN & OILSEED ISSUES

Will global food crisis come again in four years? [Korean: CSC]

http://www.hankyung.com/news/app/newsview.php?aid=2012071570031&sid=010503&nid=005&ltype=1

Summary: Severe droughts in the U.S. and Russia pushed up prices of corn and wheat by 40 percent in month.

2. MARKETING ISSUES

Lotte Mart to Open Its 97th Store in China [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2012/07/15/0318000000AKR20120715061000003.HTML

Summary: Lotte Mart reported that its 97^th store in China will open on July 18.  The store, located in Riaoning province will have a 10,900 sq. meter of shopping space.  Lotte Mart also reported that its 30^th store in Indonesia will open near Jakarta on July 26.  This new store in Indonesia will increase the total number of Lotte Mart stores in foreign countries to 129.

3. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES

Rising Concerns over Overproduction of Blueberries [Korean, WYS]

http://www.nongmin.com/article/ar_detail.htm?ar_id=205030&subMenu=articletotal

Summary : As blueberry’s effect as functional food becomes more known, demand for blueberries have increased. As a result, many grape farms have been converting to farming blueberries. This trend drastically increased the concerns for possible overproduction of blueberries.