Suncheon-si Enhances Competitiveness Through Agricultural Innovation and Rural Vitality

Leading Innovation with Fermented Food Industry, ICT Smart Farm, E-commerce, and Innovation Agriculture Center
Expecting Rural Vitality through Rural Regeneration, Expansion of Eco-friendly Agriculture, and Cultivation of High-income Crops

Perspective View of Suncheon City Fermented Food Complex

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] Amid the ongoing aging of agriculture and rural areas and rural decline due to migration, Suncheon City announced on the 8th that it will create a new turning point for revitalizing agriculture and rural areas through a major transformation of change and innovation.

The number of farming households in Suncheon City has decreased by 24% (7,828 people) over the past five years, totaling 24,212 as of the end of 2019. The cultivated area has also decreased by 996 hectares over the past five years, totaling 12,753 hectares as of the end of 2019, and 52% of the agricultural and fishery population is aged 65 or older.

Recognizing the crisis in agriculture and fishing villages, Suncheon City is set to innovate agriculture and promote sustainable agricultural policies that enhance rural vitality in response to new trends in agricultural production and consumption.

This year, the agricultural budget has been secured at 153.8 billion KRW, a 15% increase from last year, focusing on four strategic agricultural sectors: eco-friendly agriculture, economic agriculture, innovative agriculture, and welfare agriculture to enhance competitiveness.

▶ Expanding eco-friendly agriculture for healthy food production.

In line with Suncheon’s brand as the ecological capital of Korea and the trend favoring eco-friendly agricultural products, eco-friendly agriculture (organic and pesticide-free) will be expanded by 561 hectares from last year to a total of 2,501 hectares. Support will be provided for eco-friendly agricultural materials, apple snails, and residual pesticide inspection fees.

To promote healing agriculture for mental and spiritual recovery in the post-COVID-19 era, an ordinance on healing agriculture development has been enacted. Plans include training specialized personnel, introducing a healing quality certification system, fostering healing villages, and developing healing agricultural tourism products.

Meanwhile, the eco-friendly agricultural product ‘Moringa’ will be branded, eco-friendly agricultural product packages will be provided to pregnant women, and local food stores (stores 1 and 2) will be supported in switching to eco-friendly packaging materials (biodegradable).

Local Food Co., Ltd., operated by Suncheon citizens as a corporation, has seen annual sales increase every year, achieving annual sales of about 10 billion KRW last year. In April this year, the third local food store will open in Sindae-ri, Haeryong-myeon.

▶ Transitioning to economic agriculture that reduces costs and increases income.

Utilizing Suncheon’s characteristics and resources, the ‘Namhaean Fermented Food Industry Support Center’ in Seungju-eup will begin construction this year. Experts and researchers will be hired and assigned to research and develop fermented tea, fermented beverages, sauces, and kimchi, with plans to commercialize these products starting next year and lead Korea’s fermented food culture.

An ICT smart farm agricultural education center that automatically manages crop growth environments with smart equipment will be established within the year. Interested farmers will learn all processes including big data construction, cultivation facilities, and unmanned pest control facilities, and a standard model will be disseminated.

In particular, this year, 11 additional facilities for horticulture (cucumbers, vegetables, etc.) will be added, totaling 170 sites. Through the development of advanced greenhouses and ICT smart farms with remote control via smartphones and PCs, productivity will be increased.

An online sales system will be established, and a sales business group will be formed. Business spaces (product rooms) and an online business center for start-up farms will be prepared. Using these, an e-commerce platform will be built by September to supply fresh agricultural products nationwide, solving distribution channel issues.

▶ Competing with innovative agriculture that responds to consumer changes.

Since 2019, the Hope Agricultural Policy Communication Committee has been operating. Participation will be diversified and revitalized. Using the agricultural education center site in Deokwol-dong, an Innovative Agriculture Center will be built by the end of this year to nurture various leading farms, respond to trend changes, and introduce innovative technologies to prepare for future agriculture.

Among the past ‘one special product per eup/myeon’ (11 items), eight competitive items (cucumber, strawberry seedlings, water parsley, kiwifruit, peach, dried persimmon, early rice, and Korean lettuce) have been selected. Competitiveness will be enhanced through variety development, quality improvement, facility modernization, and automation. Suncheon plums will be branded by establishing convergence infrastructure centered on Woldeung-myeon and building networks and marketing for plum specialization, processing, and distribution.

With 30% of Suncheon’s population living with companion animals, to systematically and stably manage companion animals and actively respond to the companion animal industry, construction of a ‘Companion Animal Culture Center’ in Jogok-dong began this year, aiming for completion next year. The center will include experience learning spaces, education rooms, adoption centers, and counseling rooms.

To address the increasing number of abandoned animals, the designation and operation of entrusted protection shelters for abandoned animals will be expanded.

To foster the insect industry, which is gaining attention as a future food resource and new growth industry, a feasibility study will be conducted in the first half of this year. A development plan will be established according to national plans, and applications for government public projects will be submitted.

▶ Striving for welfare agriculture and rural areas where people want to live and return.

In January this year, Suncheon City reorganized its structure to establish a ‘Rural Regeneration Team’ to promote rural agreement projects that can improve rural living environments, safety, health, and welfare. This year, a rural revitalization plan will be developed with local residents, and after signing an agreement between the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Suncheon City, full-scale implementation will begin next year.

Suncheon City expects that this project will dramatically improve rural living environments once fully underway.

Two urban-rural exchange cooperation centers will be established in the first half of the year, with dedicated staff assigned. Through urban-rural exchange communities, labor mediation for farm work will be conducted to alleviate rural labor shortages, and win-win cooperation projects supplying fresh agricultural products will be carried out.

Simple house repairs and agricultural machinery repairs in rural areas will be addressed, and the ‘Suncheon-style MacGyver’ youth entrepreneurship program will be expanded to one location per eup/myeon and revitalized. For those wishing to return to farming and rural areas, exceptional settlement support is provided, including trial living in Suncheon, 1:1 agricultural mentoring, farmland rental fees, housing remodeling, moving expenses, and agricultural production costs. Last year, 480 people returned to farming, and this year the goal is 600.

Additionally, to resolve inconveniences in distant farm work, an agricultural machinery rental center will be built in Oeseo-myeon by January next year to rent machinery in a timely manner. A public service allowance of 600,000 KRW per farm household annually will be paid to farmers and fishers, and a happiness voucher card worth 200,000 KRW annually will be created to support female farmers and fishers.

Mayor Heo Seok of Suncheon said, “It is true that agriculture, rural areas, and farmers have been marginalized so far,” and expressed strong determination, saying, “Agriculture is a life industry, and we will increase financial support and build competitiveness to make Suncheon a place where people want to live and return.”

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