Now In Korea
Advocates Rally to Double Organic and Eco-Friendly Farming in South Korea
Creatrip Team
2 months ago
On the 17th, 13 organizations — including K-Agriculture Policy Council’s eco-friendly subcommittee, Catholic Farmers’ Association, green consumer groups, and organic farming associations — held a declaration rally on the National Assembly steps with about 200 producers and consumers, urging the government to implement its pledge to double eco-friendly organic agriculture. They called for a fundamental agricultural policy shift to build stable production bases, innovate public and private consumption and distribution systems, and enact concrete legal and institutional measures. The joint declaration proposed expanding public demand for eco-friendly produce through nationalizing school meals (school lunch nationalization), central government funding for food costs, expanding public catering at childcare centers and senior facilities, year-end tax deductions and purchase refunds as consumer incentives. To ensure implementation, they urged establishing a dedicated Eco-friendly Agricultural Policy Bureau, a Development Committee, regional support centers, and improving producer management systems. Producers’ representatives demanded allowing organic farmland leasing, certifying actual cultivators for organic certification and payments, and shifting verification from residue-test outcomes to process-and-value based certification. They also called for stronger support for young organic farmers, including specialized training and bundled support packages. The event concluded with delivery of the declaration and a bouquet of eco-friendly produce to lawmakers’ offices and the presidential office. Earlier, a policy forum at the National Assembly Library proposed 35 specific policy measures from producers, consumer groups, academics, and officials.
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