Agricultural Products Online Wholesale Market Transaction Volume Reaches 200 Billion Won... Increased by 100 Billion Won in Two Months

by Ju Sangdon

Published 29 Aug.2024 13:00(KST)

Updated 29 Aug.2024 14:30(KST)

Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs: "We will activate demand and seasonal agricultural product transactions during Chuseok holiday to achieve 500 billion KRW within the year"

Agricultural Products Online Wholesale Market Transaction Volume Reaches 200 Billion Won... Increased by 100 Billion Won in Two Months

As of the 20th of this month, the cumulative transaction amount of the agricultural and marine products online wholesale market, which officially launched on November 30th last year, has reached 200 billion KRW this year. After the transaction amount first exceeded 100 billion KRW on June 17th, an additional 100 billion KRW in transactions were made in just over two months. The government attributes this to the active trading of summer seasonal agricultural products such as peaches and plums through the online wholesale market starting in July.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that Minister Song Mi-ryeong held an online meeting with outstanding Agricultural Product Distribution Centers (APCs) on the 29th to listen to field opinions and encourage producers and distribution stakeholders to revitalize transactions in the online wholesale market.

APC officials attending the meeting stated, "When trading in the online wholesale market, payments are settled immediately, so there is no worry about unpaid amounts. Also, since transactions can be made directly with buyers without going through wholesale corporations, brokerage fees are reduced, which greatly helps stabilize profits." However, they requested, "In the early stages, various supports such as joint sorting fees and logistics costs are needed to attract many sellers and buyers."

In response, Minister Song said, "We plan to increase direct transactions between production areas and consumption areas through the online wholesale market to reduce unnecessary distribution processes, thereby narrowing the gap between farmers' receiving prices and consumer prices." She added, "To this end, in addition to the ongoing support for production areas such as smart APCs, next year we have prepared new projects including logistics costs for production organizations shipping through the online wholesale market, and the budget for joint sorting fees has also been expanded."