Will the Gift Value Limit for Agricultural and Marine Products Increase During Seollal?... The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission Remains Cautious

Jeon Hyun-hee, Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (center), is taking a commemorative photo with Kim Hyun-soo, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (right), and Moon Sung-hyuk, Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, who visited the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission at the Government Seoul Office on the 7th. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries requested the Commission to temporarily raise the gift price limit under the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act to alleviate management difficulties in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and to promote consumption during the holidays. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] On the 7th, the Ministers of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs jointly requested Jeon Hyun-hee, Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, to temporarily raise the 'gift limit for agricultural and marine products and processed agricultural and marine products' from the current 100,000 KRW to 200,000 KRW. In response, Chairperson Jeon said, "I agree on the necessity," but showed caution regarding the temporary increase.

On that day, Minister Moon Sung-hyuk of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Minister Kim Hyun-soo of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs met with Chairperson Jeon to make this request. The purpose was to help the agricultural and marine industries struggling due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

The two ministers conveyed opinions from the agricultural and marine industries and related organizations requesting an increase in the gift value for agricultural and marine products during the Lunar New Year holiday. They emphasized that the agricultural and marine sectors are facing significant difficulties due to reduced consumption in the dining-out and catering industries and the suspension of school meals. In particular, major agricultural and marine products such as apples, pears, ginseng, Korean beef, dried yellow corvina, and abalone heavily rely on holiday consumption, so a decrease in consumption due to reduced homecoming could cause significant damage to farmers and fishermen.

They also explained that during last year's Chuseok holiday, the temporary increase of the gift limit to 200,000 KRW resulted in a 7% increase in sales of agricultural and marine product gifts compared to Chuseok 2019, with gifts priced between 100,000 and 200,000 KRW increasing by 10%, demonstrating the effectiveness of the price adjustment.

Minister Moon said, "This Lunar New Year holiday is expected to see a decrease in homecoming population due to the more severe spread of COVID-19 and strengthened quarantine measures compared to last Chuseok," adding, "It is necessary to drive agricultural and marine product consumption and domestic demand revitalization through a gift-sending campaign linked to the price increase measure."

In response, Chairperson Jeon said, "Amending the Enforcement Decree of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act requires consideration of various aspects, including the public's standards for integrity and negative public opinion that views the limit adjustment as weakening the commitment to a clean society," and added, "We plan to carefully review this through processes such as forming public consensus and consulting related agencies."

Earlier, on the 5th, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun stated that the government would "actively consider" raising the gift allowance for agricultural and marine products and processed agricultural and marine products from the current 100,000 KRW to 200,000 KRW.

During a meeting at the Government Seoul Office with the heads of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, Korea Forest Service Cooperatives, and Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, Prime Minister Chung said, "Raising the limit every holiday could weaken the legislative intent of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act and be misinterpreted by the public as a decline in the government's commitment to establishing a culture of integrity, so a cautious approach is necessary," but added, "Considering the unprecedented crisis situation, if the public understands, the government will consider it."

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