Japan Radiation Fear Sparks Korean Diaper Rush

There has been a panic on goods coming from the area surrounding the Fukushima power plant in Japan.  Many countries have halted imports or announced increased screening to ensure that the food and goods coming from Japan are safe to consume and use.

This has led to a rush by Korean parents to buy their favorite Japanese brands of diapers.

Source:

(Reuters Life!) - The risk of radiation contamination from Japan's damaged nuclear power stations has sparked food bans across the globe and more surprisingly, a buying frenzy from South Korean mothers who fear their favorite Japanese-made diapers may suddenly become unavailable.

Cho Myung-jin, who organizes online group-buying for Japanese diapers, saw her website collapse on Tuesday under the weight of traffic as panicked South Koreans chased brands they believe are better quality than locally-made products.

"The reaction was scary. Some mothers did not go to work to reserve diapers," the 31-year old mother told Reuters. 

According to Auction Corp (www.auction.co.kr), the second-largest online shopping website in South Korea, sales of Japanese diapers have doubled since the quake. 

After her social commerce website collapsed, Cho opened a new message board selling 300 packs of diapers, limiting sales to one pack per person, and said she received 2,000 offers in a minute. 

She said the price of Japanese diapers available online has nearly doubled to 150,000 won ($133.30) a package. 

"I feel sorry that they sold out, upsetting parents who had waited for days," said Cho, whose 22-month old infant uses the Japanese product.

Why are Koreans spending twice as much for Japanese diapers ($133.30) instead of buying locally-made products?  Are Korean diapers just that bad?  Or are Korean parents operating under some silly cultural superstition that I do not understand?  Go buy some Huggies.