Hong Moon-pyo, aT President, "Agricultural and Fishery Product Distribution Should Be Reduced to 2-3 Steps... Will Promote Online Wholesale and Direct Transactions"

First Press Conference After Inauguration

Hong Moon-pyo, President of the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), stated on the 3rd that "the distribution stages of agricultural and fishery products, currently at 5 to 6 stages, must be drastically reduced to 2 to 3 stages."

At his first press briefing held in Sejong on the same day, President Hong said, "The distribution margin of 5 to 6 stages is about 16 to 21%, and if this is not changed, producers will not receive fair prices."

Hong Moon-pyo, CEO of aT, is delivering a greeting at the first press conference held on the 3rd.

He pointed to online wholesale markets and direct transaction marketplaces as ways to reduce distribution stages and emphasized that he would actively promote their revitalization. President Hong explained, "We have been operating by adding fishery products to the agricultural products traded in the online wholesale market launched last November, and this needs to be further activated," adding, "We will implement practical measures to reduce distribution stages, such as establishing direct transaction marketplaces (auction sites) by city and county."

Regarding measures to respond to climate change, he also expressed a commitment that "aT will play an active role." President Hong said, "If production is not stable, aT, which is responsible for distribution, will have no work to do," and added, "It is time for aT to take an interest and play a role from the production stage in responding to climate change and in eco-friendly and low-carbon agricultural products."

President Hong pointed out that the domestic food industry centered on rice must change. He stated, "Korea produces 98% rice alone, but with signs of food weaponization such as climate change, earthquakes, and wars, we cannot prepare with rice alone," and argued, "We need to diversify the rice-centered food crop production system to wheat, soybeans, corn, barley, etc., to increase food self-sufficiency and strengthen food security."

He also expressed his intention to actively promote the expansion of a stable supply and demand control system for agricultural products. President Hong said, "To establish a low-temperature distribution system, we will prepare a long-term storage system for agricultural products by expanding advanced storage warehouses such as regional CA (Controlled Atmosphere) warehouses and production area stockpiling bases, and strengthen a stable supply and demand control system," adding, "We will contribute to supply and demand stability by additionally constructing stockpiling warehouses for highland cabbage in Gangwon-do."

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