Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and NongHyup Promote Fruit and Vegetable Supply Stabilization Project to Stabilize Fruit and Vegetable Prices

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and NongHyup Economic Holdings are promoting a supply stabilization project by accepting applications for contract shipment support until the 18th of this month, aiming for a contract target of 62,000 tons (t) this year for five major fruit and vegetable items: tomatoes, green chili peppers, pumpkins, cucumbers, and eggplants, to ensure smooth supply and price stability.

Introduced in 2016, the fruit and vegetable supply stabilization project functions by using interest-free funds raised by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and NongHyup to sign shipment contracts with fruit and vegetable farmers. Depending on supply and demand conditions, shipment timing and volume are adjusted to prevent price surges and crashes, thereby stabilizing supply. Additionally, by providing funds at the time of planting, it also contributes to the management stability of farms.

NongHyup selects project participants by receiving applications from participating organizations such as regional and item-specific NongHyup cooperatives and general corporations capable of contract shipments for each item. Selected participants are provided with interest-free advance payments for one year within 80% of the contracted shipment amount.

Moreover, to support stable production and improve product quality for contracted farms, various support measures are in place, including ▲ joint sales promotion projects ▲ provision of nutrients and pesticides to enhance product quality ▲ support for additional costs incurred to suppress excessive shipments ▲ exemption from penalties for contracted farms in case of various weather disasters. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and NongHyup Economic Holdings plan to thoroughly stabilize supply and demand by implementing shipment and volume regulations during price crashes and promoting growth recovery support and shipment encouragement measures during price surges.

Project participants can submit applications collected from interested farms to NongHyup Economic Holdings by June 18. Funds will be provided at the end of June, and recipients will sign shipment contracts with farms by the end of August and ship the contracted quantities from October according to the contract terms. The 2022 project plans to accept applications in December considering the planting season and provide funds in January of the following year.

Jang Cheolhoon, CEO of Agricultural Economics at NongHyup Economic Holdings, said, "We ask for active participation in the supply stabilization project promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and NongHyup to stabilize fruit and vegetable prices," adding, "NongHyup will also do its best by mobilizing all its capabilities to ensure smooth supply of fruit and vegetable items."

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