Chungnam Expands Local Seafood Supply for School Meals from 11% to 35%

[Asia Economy (Hongseong) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province is expanding the supply ratio of locally produced seafood in school meals. The aim is to change the eating habits of adolescents, who have become accustomed to instant foods in daily life, to seafood.

On the 22nd, the province announced plans to expand the "Joint Purchase Support Project for Locally Produced Seafood in School Meals" with this content.

The joint purchase support is implemented to promote the consumption of locally produced seafood, improve the preference for seafood among growing children and adolescents, foster students' interest and familiarity with seafood and improve eating habits, and establish a potential consumer base for local seafood.

Currently, the proportion of locally produced agricultural products supplied to school meals is 69.5%, and livestock products account for 62.3%. In contrast, seafood accounts for only 11%.

Accordingly, the province aims to raise the supply rate of locally produced seafood in school meals from the low teens to 35% by 2026 through the expansion of joint purchase support.

The joint purchase support targets 1,224 elementary, middle, and high schools located in 15 cities and counties within Chungnam Province, with a total enrollment of about 260,000 students.

The support is provided by paying 20% of the purchase cost when each school buys 19 items of locally produced seafood from six designated local suppliers through the School Meal Support Center.

The budget to be invested in support will increase to 500 million KRW next year, 1.5 billion KRW in 2024, 3 billion KRW in 2025, and 5 billion KRW in 2026.

Through this, the province plans to gradually increase the supply rate of locally produced seafood in school meals to 20% next year, 25% in 2024, 30% in 2025, and 35% in 2026.

Separately, the province will also fully operate the "Our Seafood Day in School Meals" with support from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives.

The project supports the purchase cost of seafood when target schools provide school meals made with domestic seafood.

For example, if students’ trays include nakji bibimbap (octopus mixed rice) and flower crab seafood soup, the cost of the octopus in the bibimbap and the flower crab, cuttlefish, and shrimp in the seafood soup will be supported. The support amount per school is set at a maximum of 1.7 million KRW.

Previously, the province selected 15 elementary, middle, and high schools in 11 cities and counties, including Seodang Elementary School in Cheonan, Mosan Middle School in Asan, and Seoryeong High School in Seosan, as target schools for operating Seafood Day. These schools plan to individually operate Our Seafood Day by October.

Yoo Jae-young, head of the Fisheries Industry Division of the province, said, "Seafood has relatively low preference among potential consumers such as children and adolescents, and locally produced seafood in the province is relatively expensive, making it difficult to purchase with limited school meal budgets. The expansion of joint purchase support and Our Seafood Day will overcome these limitations and provide an opportunity for adolescents to more easily access local seafood."

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