Jeong Hwang-geun: "Considering expanding 'Cheonwon's Breakfast' during vacations... Securing maximum budget including financial support"

1st Anniversary Press Conference on the 8th
"Ensuring Stable Income for Small Farmers through Appropriate Rice Price Maintenance"

Jeong Hwang-geun, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, stated, "If university opinions are gathered, the 'Thousand-Won Breakfast' project could be extended even during vacation periods," adding, "We have agreed to discuss securing the budget for next year to the maximum extent possible with the Deputy Prime Minister."

Minister Jeong made these remarks at a press conference marking his first anniversary in office, held on the 8th at the Government Complex Sejong. He mentioned the possibility of continuing the Thousand-Won Breakfast project, originally scheduled to run until November at the end of the academic semester, during vacation periods as well.

The Thousand-Won Breakfast project allows university students to purchase meals typically priced between 3,000 and 5,000 won for just 1,000 won. For each meal, the government and students each contribute 1,000 won, while the remaining cost is covered by the university. Initially, the project targeted 690,000 meals, but due to a surge in demand, the government allowed all universities that applied to participate, increasing the number to 2.34 million meals. Minister Jeong noted, "Many universities face financial difficulties, so we are also considering the role of local governments in providing financial support."

Addressing concerns that the financial burden on universities might be passed on to outsourced meal service providers, he said, "Since this project was initiated to expand rice consumption, we have maximized the use of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs' budget, and the Ministry of Education has allowed universities to use part of their general financial support funds. If the project expansion causes specific companies to bear excessive costs, we consider that inappropriate and will review the matter."

As achievements during his first year in office, Minister Jeong highlighted the strategic crop direct payment system, the powdered rice policy, securing food sovereignty, and the rejection of the Grain Management Act amendment.

He stated, "By institutionalizing the strategic crop direct payment system through the powdered rice policy, we have made it unshakable, and we are seeing its effects this year," adding, "We will secure practical food sovereignty through powdered rice." Accordingly, he explained that this year, rice cultivation area can be reduced by more than 20,000 hectares, with further reductions expected in the future.

Regarding the veto of the Grain Management Act amendment, Minister Jeong said, "Among about 60 agricultural organizations, approximately 50 supported the veto either in writing or verbally," and added, "Based on public opinion, we were able to prevent a detrimental amendment." He further explained, "When analyzing the Grain Management Act based on two criteria?whether it benefits our agriculture and whether it helps rice farmers?we concluded that it did not meet either. Those advocating for the amendment claimed it was necessary to stabilize rice prices and increase farm income, but that is misleading farmers."

Minister Jeong explained, "The oversupply of rice is due to structural issues such as increased meat consumption and decreased carbohydrate intake leading to reduced rice consumption," and added, "Rice cultivation is mechanized due to conditions in the fields, and for elderly farmers, rice farming is manageable. The government also has safeguards for rice farming, making it difficult for farmers to abandon rice cultivation."

He also noted that the delay in tariff implementation contributed to the oversupply. South Korea joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995 and applied tariffs to all agricultural products except rice, for which tariff implementation was postponed twice (in 1995 and 2004). Under these conditions, rice for cooking was mandatorily imported, and the volume has steadily increased, currently requiring annual imports of 409,000 tons. Minister Jeong said, "The government should have fought hard to prevent the tariff delay at that time," expressing regret and sorrow.

Regarding the opposition party's proposed 'Three Alternative Laws for Rice Price Normalization,' he said, "Like the Grain Management Act, if the proposals are reasonable based on whether they benefit the rice industry and farmers, we can consider them," but added, "If they deepen the oversupply trend or revert agricultural policy to the past, the government's position is firm." This can be interpreted as a de facto opposition stance.

On the strategic crop direct payment system, he said, "The support scale will be expanded to 5 trillion won by 2027, enabling an additional 560,000 farming households to receive direct payments." He explained that the government has committed to maintaining the rice price at around 200,000 won per 80kg during the harvest season to ensure stable income for small and medium-sized farmers.

Regarding powdered rice, a flagship policy of the new administration, he said, "We are developing products using powdered rice through research and development with food companies," and explained, "Our goal is to replace 10% of the wheat flour we consume with powdered rice by 2027."

Minister Jeong also expressed a strong commitment to implementing the Rural Spatial Planning Act, which passed the plenary session in February and is scheduled to take effect in March next year. He explained the background for promoting the act, saying, "While cities have designated land uses that fundamentally prevent indiscriminate development, rural areas have lacked similar systems except for agricultural promotion zones. This has resulted in livestock farms located in the middle of villages or factories arranged in front and behind villages." He emphasized, "The rural space is more important than agriculture itself," and pledged to allow zoning according to regional conditions, such as industrial districts, landscape preservation districts, and livestock districts.

Jeong Hwang-geun, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, is explaining the achievements of his first anniversary in office at the Government Sejong Complex on the 8th.

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