Nongshim Helps Young Farmers Settle Early with 'Cheongnyeon Sumi' Program

On the 5th, Haesung Agricultural Corporation CEO Geum Seokheon, Nongjeongwon Director Shin Myeongsik, Nongshim Management Planning Office Manager Kim Bogyu, and farmer representative Oh Segon (from left to right) are taking a commemorative photo at the 'Cheongnyeon Sumi' MOU signing ceremony.

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] Nongshim is launching the first public-private cooperative support program in the domestic food industry for young people returning to farming.

On the 8th, Nongshim announced that it will collaborate with the Korea Agency of Education, Promotion and Information Service in Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (EPIS), under the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, to run the ‘Cheongnyeon Sumi’ program to assist young farmers cultivating domestic Sumi potatoes. Unlike simply purchasing domestic agricultural products, this program supports the entire process from sowing to harvesting and sales.

Based on over 40 years of experience growing alongside domestic potato farms since launching the country’s first fresh potato snack ‘Potato Chip’ in 1980, Nongshim planned the youth farmer development program ‘Cheongnyeon Sumi’. Nongshim aims to help young return-to-farming farmers settle early through ‘Cheongnyeon Sumi’.

Nongshim’s Cheongnyeon Sumi program will provide diverse support throughout all stages from the start of farming to sales, including financial aid, harvest management, securing sales channels, and education.

Before sowing, Nongshim plans to provide advance payments through pre-contracts to help young farmers conduct farming activities stably. They will conduct comprehensive farming management education through on-site inspections during sowing, including seed potato storage and management methods, and during harvest season, staff will be stationed locally to manage potato quality. The harvested potatoes will be purchased by Nongshim and used for producing ‘Sumi Chips’.

Additionally, Nongshim will establish mentor-mentee partnerships between excellent farms and young farmers to transfer detailed know-how. To this end, Nongshim signed an MOU with EPIS on the 5th to proceed with the Cheongnyeon Sumi program. Going forward, Nongshim plans to select 10 young farmers annually as ‘Cheongnyeon Sumi’ participants and provide full support together with EPIS.

A Nongshim official said, “By supporting the stable agricultural activities of young farmers, we expect to fulfill our corporate social responsibility and further improve the quality of agricultural products used in Nongshim products,” adding, “We will continue to carry out various activities to coexist and prosper with farms.”

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