Gyeongbuk Yeongju 'Punggi Insam' Breaks into Consumer Market with Joint Branding and Marketing

Ministry of SMEs and Startups Selected for 'Small Manufacturers Complex Support Center' Project
71 Billion Won Invested to Establish Joint Facilities for 180 Manufacturing Companies

Photo of Punggi Ginseng Festival.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Dong-wook] Gyeongsangbuk-do announced on the 9th that Yeongju-si Punggi Ginseng Small Business Complex Support Center has been finally selected in the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' '2020 Small Business Complex Support Center Establishment and Operation Contest Project,' receiving 2.5 billion KRW in national funding.

The 'Small Business Complex Support Center Establishment and Operation Project' is a project aimed at creating an innovation foundation for small businesses by providing integrated support for smart equipment installation, product development, exhibition sales, and online marketing necessary for small businesses. It has been led by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Small Enterprise and Market Service since 2019.

In January this year, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups received applications from six local governments nationwide and selected three basic local governments through on-site inspections and evaluation of project implementation basis, feasibility, operational capacity, and execution ability. The selected regions include Yeongju-si, Gyeongbuk (Punggi Ginseng), Mapo-gu, Seoul (Printing), and Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do (Metal Processing).

Punggi-eup, Yeongju-si, is the main production area of ginseng with 181 ginseng manufacturing companies densely located, and it was highly evaluated as a cluster with great potential for high added value creation and business effects upon the establishment of the complex support center.

The Punggi Ginseng Small Business Complex Support Center, to be located at 145 Dongyang-daero, Punggi-eup, Yeongju-si, will be equipped with ▲shared manufacturing facilities ▲HACCP and GMP certification testing and analysis support ▲joint brand development and joint marketing (e-shopping mall, new media promotion) ▲shared low-temperature storage facilities. To this end, Gyeongbuk-do will invest a total project cost of 7.1 billion KRW (2.5 billion KRW national funding, 1.9 billion KRW from Gyeongbuk-do, and 2.7 billion KRW from Yeongju-si).

Punggi Ginseng, known for its high saponin content and excellent anticancer effects, as well as some small businesses' independent brands, has been in decline due to low awareness, lack of distribution and marketing, and insufficient promotion. Gyeongbuk-do plans to entrust the Gyeongbuk Bio Industry Research Institute, a specialized food and pharmaceutical research institution, to strengthen the cooperative system among small businesses and enhance product trust by standardizing quality through new product development, joint production, integrated brand use, and joint marketing.

Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk-do, emphasized, "Through the establishment of the Punggi Ginseng Small Business Complex Support Center, we expect the competitiveness and sales of small businesses related to Punggi Ginseng to increase, revitalizing the Punggi Ginseng industry." He added, "We will continue to carry out support projects for small businesses in the future."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.