South Korea's offer of 10,000 tons of corn in food aid to North Korea is just one-tenth what the communist state asked for, a report said Thursday.
Seoul also demanded that its aid be sent to a specific famine-hit area, Dong-A Ilbo newspaper quoted an unidentified government official as saying.
Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung denied the report, saying neither side mentioned specific amounts of food when they held working-level talks on October 16.
The talks were held to discuss holding more reunions for separated families, but ended without agreement following the North's aid request.
The Seoul official told Dong-A: "The North was very perplexed by the South's offer to ship 10,000 tons of corn in response to the North's request for 100,000 tons of rice in aid at the working-level talks.
"The North may have had its pride hurt, but it cannot but accept the South's offer due to its worsening food shortages."
The official said the South also demanded that its corn be shipped to the northeastern province of North Hamgyeong, which had been severely hit by a cold spell and a consequent bad harvest.
"To secure transparency in aid distribution which had been at issue, we presented for the first time a place where it should go," the official said.
Good Friends, a South Korean welfare group which works in the North, said Wednesday the North is desperate to import grain amid predictions that the country's persistent food shortages will worsen next year.
South Korea Monday offered to ship about 10,000 tons of corn, in what would be the first official aid to its neighbor for almost two years. The North has yet to respond, according to Seoul officials.