[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Sancheong-gun, Gyeongnam Province, announced on the 29th that it will expand and distribute ‘wild edible greens,’ which are emerging as a new high-income crop, to local farms.
On this day, the county distributed 30,000 wild edible green plants, including thornless Eumnamu and Durup, to about 90 farms in the region. Wild edible greens, which are in season in spring, have seen increased demand recently due to environmental and social changes such as aging population and the rise of well-being, leading to greater interest in immunity.
Sancheong-gun is focusing on cultivating Eumnamu and Durup, which are considered noble wild greens and are the most preferred by consumers among spring wild edible greens.
Sancheong wild edible greens, produced in the clean area of Jirisan, are known for their excellent taste and aroma. They are harvested about 20 to 30 days earlier than those from Gangwon, a major production area, making them popular with consumers and highly competitive in price.
Since last year, the county has been distributing 40,000 thornless Eumnamu plants, which are easy to harvest and manage, while focusing on spring wild edible greens such as wild garlic, gomchwi, and nun-gaeseungma. They are also promoting a manure support project for eco-friendly forest product cultivation.
In particular, in April this year, they launched a ‘wild edible greens package’ that selects high-quality wild greens produced by professional foresters and packages them in small portions according to consumer preferences. The wild edible greens package received great responses through the San-en Cheong online shopping mall and special sales events in major cities such as Seoul and Changwon.
Recently, with the selection of the ‘2022 New Variety Cultivation Complex Pilot Project’ by the Korea Forest Service, which involves a national budget investment of 2.5 billion KRW, the county is accelerating its forest income projects.
A county official said, “We plan to continue expanding the number of farms cultivating wild edible greens to revitalize producer organizations and increase production through the creation of large-scale complexes. Next year, we will invest 3.7 billion KRW in eight forest income project areas, including eco-friendly forest product cultivation and forest crop production complex establishment, to promote customized forestry income projects.”
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