Suncheon-si Wins 'Excellence Award' in Eco-Friendly Agriculture Competition

Published 16 Jan.2024 13:03(KST)

Securing Business Promotion Funds and Achieving Diversification of Certified Products

Suncheon City, Jeollanam-do (Mayor Noh Kwan-gyu) announced on the 16th that it won the Grand Prize at the ‘2023 Eco-friendly Agriculture Awards’ hosted by Jeollanam-do.

The Eco-friendly Agriculture Awards are given to outstanding cities and counties that lead sustainable eco-friendly agriculture centered on organic farming by evaluating the expansion of certified areas for eco-friendly agricultural products and strengthening safety management, as well as to excellent farmers who actively practice eco-friendly agriculture in the field.

[Photo by Suncheon City]

The city promoted the cultivation of high-quality eco-friendly agriculture through policies such as ▲promotion of eco-friendly agriculture activation policies ▲education to strengthen safety management of eco-friendly agricultural products ▲supply of eco-friendly agricultural products to school meals ▲projects to diversify items such as fruit trees and vegetables.

In particular, the city received high marks for having the lowest cancellation rate of certified areas in the field of strengthening safety management of eco-friendly agricultural products, and a 79% usage rate of eco-friendly agricultural products in school meals within the province. Compared to the previous year, the area of diversified certified items increased by 4.4% from 1,443ha to 1,506ha, achieving excellent results in policy promotion areas and receiving a prize money of 50 million KRW.

Additionally, in the field of eco-friendly farmers’ cultivation and production, Mr. Seon Seong-yoon, who cultivates organic rice, chestnuts, and bracken in Suncheon City, received the Grand Prize. Following 2022, Suncheon City earned the honor of producing the Grand Prize winner in the eco-friendly farmer category for two consecutive years.

A city official said, “This award is the first in 10 years since winning the Grand Prize in 2013, and it is the result of the steady efforts of eco-friendly farming households despite the difficulties of eco-friendly agriculture,” adding, “We will continue to strive to expand organic farming and strengthen the foundation of eco-friendly agriculture.”