“"During peak hours, it can take over an hour to complete a delivery. The food gets cold and customer complaints pile up, leaving us utterly frustrated." Cho, a 41-year-old fast-food operator in Gwangju, is facing mounting losses. With riders now being assigned from up to 5 kilometers away — five or six times the usual distance — delivery delays of 30 minutes just to pick up the food have become commonplace. "Often, orders are canceled through platform customer service without our knowledge," Cho said. "Every time I have to throw away ruined food, my heart sinks." Korea's highly efficient food delivery ecosystem is fracturing under the weight of geopolitical shocks and platform algorithms. A surge in global fuel prices, triggered by the fallout from the U.S.-Iran conflict, has collided with falling delivery fees. In response, delivery riders are actively avoiding low-margin, long-distance orders to protect their earnings. Jung, a 32-year-old delivery veteran of seven years, said falling platform fees and record fuel costs have decimated his take-home pay. "While it is impossible to ver
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