Yeonggwang-gun, Fostering New High-Income Crop 'Shine Muscat'

[Yeonggwang=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seong-jeong] Yeonggwang-gun, Jeollanam-do (Governor Kim Jun-seong) announced on the 17th that it will focus on cultivating 'Shine Muscat' grapes as a new regional specialty crop to increase the income of local grape farmers.

On the 16th, Governor Kim Jun-seong visited the Shine Muscat grape farm of Yoo Won-sik in Yeonggwang-eup to encourage farmers who are preparing for future agriculture and to listen to their difficulties, strengthening communication with farmers.

At the site, six farms that have been cultivating Shine Muscat grapes with support from the county since last year reviewed cultivation methods using existing rain shelters and discussed facility improvements openly.

Shine Muscat grapes have a high sugar content of 18-20 Brix and are green grapes that can be eaten with the skin. The flesh is firm and has a crisp texture.

They are also juicy and have excellent taste and aroma reminiscent of European grapes, making them popular among consumers. In Yeonggwang, the number of farms cultivating Shine Muscat grapes has steadily increased since 2018, with 5.6 hectares currently under cultivation.

The farm of Yoo Won-sik, visited on this day, has been planting Shine Muscat grapes since last year, and an income of about 100 million KRW is expected from approximately 4,000㎡ of farmland starting next year.

Governor Kim Jun-seong said, "We will continuously visit leading farms of new income crops to communicate with farmers on-site, identify their difficulties, and actively reflect them in county administration," adding, "We will spare no support in developing and fostering new regional specialty income crops to strengthen the competitiveness of county agriculture."

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