Gyeongbuk Cheongdo-gun, Surge in 'Yubak Fertilizer' Subsidies... Fierce Snatching Among Producers

Cheongdo-gun Receives 1.7 Billion Won Government Support This Year, Triple Previous Amount
Companies with Sales Power Fiercely Compete for Customers... Cooperative 'Ignores' Situation

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Dong-wook] As demand from farms for 'Yu-bak fertilizer,' known as an eco-friendly land improvement agent, increases, the amount of support from the Korea Forest Service this year has also surged more than threefold in some areas.

Meanwhile, in some rural areas, producers of Yu-bak fertilizer are fiercely competing to secure supply channels, causing repeated damages to farms due to duplicate applications. However, the Forest Cooperatives or local governments responsible for managing and supervising this are turning a blind eye.

According to Cheongdo County in Gyeongsangbuk-do on the 5th, the Korea Forest Service's support amount for Yu-bak fertilizer for farms in the Cheongdo area this year has reached 1.7 billion KRW, more than three times last year's amount.

In previous years, support was limited to 120,000 bags (20 kg each) annually, but this year, about 400,000 bags can be supported. Cheongdo County received applications for 300,000 bags of support from May to June and plans to accept applications for an additional 100,000 bags in the second half of the year.

The government subsidy is about 4,000 KRW (including 1,200 KRW from local government funds), roughly half of the consumer price of Yu-bak fertilizer, which ranges from 7,600 to 8,700 KRW. Forest product farms registered as agricultural management entities (with a cultivation area of 300 pyeong or more) can apply for one bag per 10 pyeong. For example, a forest product farm with a cultivation area of 1,000 pyeong can apply for 100 bags and receive about 400,000 KRW, which is roughly half the fertilizer cost.

The problem is that some fruit growers, such as peach farmers, and mountain area owners who are not eligible for support are borrowing the names of qualified farms to apply for Yu-bak fertilizer as a land improvement agent, causing various abuses.

In the Cheongdo area, there are 12 companies producing and supplying Yu-bak fertilizer. While these companies are fiercely competing to secure customers, fertilizer companies with financial power and sales capabilities are encouraging mountain area owners to submit duplicate applications, leading to frequent conflicts with farmers who lent their names for applications.

Mr. Kim (55), who cultivates forest land in Cheongdo County, said, "Since I was not eligible to apply, I obtained consent from the landowner (registered agricultural management entity) and applied for 100 bags to the Forest Cooperative, but the landowner changed their mind and submitted a duplicate application through someone else, which was a frustrating experience."

He added, "The landowner asked me to cancel the application because 'an elderly mother in her 80s wants to apply,' so I had no choice but to cancel the A company brand fertilizer. Later, I found out that another person applied for fertilizer from another company (B company) under the landowner's name. What’s even more frustrating is that the fertilizer the landowner received was not from B company, which was applied for later, but from A company, which I had canceled," raising questions about the cooperative's management practices.

He urged, "To eliminate the abuses of duplicate applications to the Forest Cooperative and the interception of orders among companies, a system should be established to prevent duplicate applications after initial support."

Regarding this, a representative of the Cheongdo Forest Cooperative said, "If an application is canceled, refunds cannot be made immediately; after a certain period, refunds are processed under the name of the registered agricultural management entity, not the applicant. The establishment of a duplicate application prohibition system needs to be carefully considered for pros and cons, and this is the first time I have heard about the issue of companies intercepting orders."

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