BPA and 8 Other Public Institutions Open the 8th Industry-Academia-Research Linked Smart Farm

Support through the Busan Economic Revitalization Support Fund

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] Busan Port Authority (BPA, President Kang Jun-seok) and nine public institutions in the Busan area held an opening ceremony for the ‘BEF Smart Farm No. 8’ supported through the ‘Busan Economic Revitalization Support Fund’ on January 26.

The nine public institutions are the Korea Technology Finance Corporation, Busan Urban Corporation, Busan Port Authority, Korea Housing & Urban Guarantee Corporation, Korea South-East Power Co., Ltd., Korea Securities Depository, Korea Asset Management Corporation, Korea Housing Finance Corporation, and Korea Ocean Business Corporation. (In alphabetical order)

Officials are taking a commemorative photo at the opening ceremony of the 'BEF Smart Farm Branch 8,' supported through the 'Busan Economic Revitalization Support Fund.'

BEF stands for Busan Embracement Fund for Economic Vitalization, a fund established by nine public institutions in the Busan area to foster the local industrial ecosystem and support sustainable growth.

The BEF Smart Farm No. 8 was installed in an unused space within Kosin University located in Yeongdo-gu, Busan.

At the No. 8 location, high value-added crops, mainly tender leafy vegetables that require specialized cultivation due to their high medicinal ingredient content, will be primarily produced.

In particular, Kosin University plans to provide various theoretical and practical agricultural education to vulnerable groups such as slow learners and young people with developmental disabilities at the No. 8 smart farm to help strengthen their employment capabilities.

Since 2020, Busan Port Authority and the other nine public institutions in Busan have supported smart farm installation projects through BEF, opening up to the No. 8 location, expanding the spread of smart agriculture within the local community, and expecting to promote production and distribution structures based on ESG innovative growth methods.

Hwang Tae-yeon, CEO of Maeil Maeil Jeulgeowo, who operates the No. 8 smart farm, said, “Through the BEF smart farm, we will contribute to establishing therapeutic agriculture targeting vulnerable groups in the region.”

Therapeutic agriculture refers to all agricultural activities provided to restore mental and physical health through agriculture.

President Lee Byung-su of Kosin University, who participated in this collaborative project, said, “We plan to actively utilize our university’s infrastructure, which includes specialized departments related to medical care, education, and welfare, to support talent development through therapeutic agriculture research and industry-academia-linked educational programs.”

Busan Port Authority and the nine public institutions in Busan have established the BEF fund and have carried out various projects such as ▲financial support according to company growth stages ▲crowdfunding support ▲management consulting ▲programs for discovering and nurturing future entrepreneurs ▲accelerating programs ▲online and offline sales channel support ▲smart farm installation support ▲overseas expansion support.

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