Haenam-gun Accelerates Development of 'Kimchi Export Complex'

Consultation Meeting by Sector, National Treasury Proposal to Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

Haenam County held a meeting to gather opinions from various sectors and discuss the establishment of a kimchi export complex. (Photo by Haenam County)

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Hyun] Haenam-gun, Jeollanam-do is accelerating the kimchi export complex project aimed at revitalizing the kimchi processing industry.

According to Haenam-gun on the 12th, various opinions were gathered and meetings were held to establish concrete plans for the creation of the kimchi export complex, and on the 7th, a request was made to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to include it in the national budget.

The Haenam-gun kimchi export complex will be developed as a specialized export-driven strategic industry of Haenam by 2024 within the Masan-myeon Food Specialization Complex District 2, establishing infrastructure such as raw material and food storage and logistics centers, processing plants, a kimchi component functionality research center (demonstration, analysis), and support for startups, exports, and R&D.

Earlier this year, the county selected the kimchi export complex project as a new national budget proposal and visited the Jeollanam-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services and the Gwangju World Kimchi Research Institute to discuss attracting regional R&D centers to build support infrastructure for the kimchi industry.

Based on this, on the 2nd, related organizations including Jeollanam-do, Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, World Kimchi Research Institute, Jeonnam Center for Creative Economy & Innovation, Jeonnam Food Industry Research Center, Daesang Corporation, and Hwawon Nonghyup gathered at the Haenam County Office Situation Room to discuss specific plans for establishing the kimchi export complex.

At the meeting, measures for stable supply of raw materials necessary for the establishment of the kimchi export complex, development of customized recipes for each export target country, and plans to maintain quality and safety during long-term distribution were discussed.

In particular, through four major strategies?stabilizing raw material supply, differentiating Haenam kimchi quality, advancing manufacturing processes, and spreading kimchi-making culture?related organizations agreed to actively cooperate during the project implementation process.

Haenam-gun is also considering conducting a feasibility study for attraction and will make thorough efforts to secure national funding so that the consumption of Haenam cabbage is promoted and the kimchi industry can be intensively developed as an export-driven strategic industry.

County Governor Myung Hyun-gwan stated, “We are focusing on establishing the kimchi export complex to increase income from Haenam cabbage, which is the highest quality nationwide, and to expand the kimchi processing sector,” adding, “We will work closely with related organizations to establish Haenam as the mecca of Korea’s kimchi industry beyond just cabbage.”

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