Goheung Yuja 'Immune Boosting' Scientific Efficacy Verification Underway

Initiation of Human Application Test, Attraction of National Funded Project

[Goheung=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Shim Jeong-woo] Goheung-gun, Jeollanam-do announced that 'Goheung Yuja,' a representative agricultural product of Goheung and accounting for 58% of the nation's largest cultivation area, has been finally selected for the 2022 Food Functionality Evaluation Public Project by the Korea Food Research Institute under the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

This year, the county plans to actively verify the efficacy of the raw material (yuja) through human clinical application tests in the field of 'immune enhancement.'

The 'Food Functionality Evaluation Support Project' is a program led by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korea Food Research Institute to foster high value-added food industries. It supports step-by-step evaluations of food functionality using domestic agricultural and livestock products, including pre-human application tests (cell and animal experiments), human application tests, and individual recognition of functional raw materials.

Through the 'Food Functionality Evaluation Support Project,' the county has demonstrated various functional efficacies of yuja over more than a decade, starting with proving its anti-diabetic and anti-obesity effects, followed by improvements in cognitive function, cholesterol, anti-inflammation, and osteoporosis.

Based on these human application test research results and accumulated scientific data, the county is strategically pursuing the final goal of obtaining individual certification from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for immune enhancement of Goheung Yuja raw material.

The selected public project this year is a two-year annual project with a total budget of 250 million KRW, aiming to scientifically prove the immune enhancement effect of Goheung Yuja.

Last year, the immune enhancement efficacy of 'Goheung Yuja' was proven through pre-human application tests, i.e., cell and animal experiments, and from this year, human application tests will be conducted. Subsequently, support will be provided for registration of individual certification of functional raw materials, the final stage of food functionality evaluation by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

A county official stated, “In this era where consumer interest in health foods is rapidly increasing, research and development on yuja’s immune enhancement is more urgently needed than ever. If the research and development succeed, the administration will lead ways to utilize yuja raw materials more broadly, fostering a high value-added food industry. It is expected to greatly contribute to the practical increase of agricultural income for producers and the revitalization of the local economy through the functional materialization and productization of yuja.”

Goheung=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Shim Jeong-woo sevenshim@asiae.co.kr