Kim Jong Un: "Without error" fulfill grain production targets

(Patria) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called on government officials to ensure the country "without error" fulfills its grain production targets, state media reported on Thursday, amid reports that food shortages in Pyongyang are worsening, AFP reports.

Kim on Wednesday, the last day of a key ruling party meeting, "ardently called for achieving this year's grain production target," the official Korean Central News Agency reported.

"In order to increase agricultural production throughout the country, attention should be paid to overcoming distortions in agricultural guidelines and it is important to concentrate on increasing yields per hectare on all farms," the report added.

The latest report comes after Kim on Monday called for a "fundamental transformation" of the country's agricultural production, and the South Korean Unification Ministry announced last month that there were reports of starvation deaths in the north.

"We believe that the food shortage there is serious," said ministry spokesperson Koo Byoung, adding that Pyongyang appears to have requested food aid from the World Food Programme.