Hamyang-gun Holds On-site Demonstration of Full Mechanization in Onion Cultivation Process

Ministry of Agriculture, Nonghyup, and Producers Attend, Expecting Mechanization to Address Aging Population and Labor Shortage

Yangpajeongsikki. [Image source=Hamyang-gun]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] The entire process of onion cultivation is being mechanized. This is a measure to address labor shortages in processes such as onion planting, harvesting, and storage.

Hamyang-gun, Gyeongnam Province, announced on the 26th that on the afternoon of the 28th, it will showcase mechanization technologies covering the entire process from seedling cultivation to harvesting and storage to promote mechanization in onion cultivation.

At this demonstration event, mechanization technologies will be presented not only for the simple onion planting process but for the entire process from seedling cultivation to harvesting and storage. This will help producers understand mechanization and is expected to greatly contribute to the future expansion of mechanization adoption. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Hamyang-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do, NongHyup, producers, and agricultural machinery companies will participate.

During the event, onion seedling cultivation technology for mechanical planting will be introduced, along with ridge formation and plastic film covering techniques, mechanical planters for planting, boom sprayers for pest control, and low-temperature storage facilities will be demonstrated.

In particular, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has restricted the entry of foreign workers and concentrated labor demand during the busy farming season, leading to increased labor costs and a heavier financial burden on farmers, this demonstration event is expected to greatly help solve the chronic labor shortage problem.

A county official stated, “Through this demonstration event, we will exhibit and demonstrate agricultural machinery related to onion planting and harvesting, in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, to respond to rural aging and resolve labor shortages in the onion planting and harvesting processes.”