The military will raise the average daily meal cost for service members by 14 percent to 10,000 won ($9) next month, the defense ministry said Thursday, amid criticism soldiers, especially those under coronavirus quarantine, are poorly fed.

The decision was announced as the government launched an interagency task force to come up with measures to improve troops' living conditions following a series of complaints over inconveniences.

The quality of military meals, in particular, gained attention after active-duty soldiers uploaded photos of their meals on a Facebook page that serves as an anonymous bulletin board for troops, leading to Defense Minister Suh Wook's apology.

The ministry had originally planned to raise the daily meal cost next year, but the push has been advanced "under close coordination with the financial authorities," the ministry said. (Yonhap)