Sales of products designed to filter fine dust skyrocketed in recent weeks following a warmer climate and the fine dust season approaching, an industry data showed. 

According to online shopping mall 11st, sales of masks soared 346 percent year-on-year from Feb. 21 to 27 when Seoul’s ultra-fine dust concentration levels exceeded 50 micrograms per cubic meter. Sales of air purifiers also increased by 81 percent on-year. 

Sales of houseplants known to filter indoor air such as Sansevieria stuckyi and parlor palm went up by 35 percent in the same period. Sales of portable oxygen cans surged 784 percent on-year.

Pork belly, which many Koreans believe the slippery and oily fat from the pork belly is good for removing dust from the lungs, saw a sales increase of 428 percent compared to the same period in the last year. 

Local electronics retailer Lotte HiMart said the sales of air purifiers rose 250 percent from January to Feb. 27 compared to the previous year. 

By Kim Da-sol (ddd@heraldcorp.com)