"If You Saw It Yourself, You Wouldn't Eat Pork"… Seohungwon, Yanggu County Governor-Elect, Announces Administrative Measures for Pig Farming Complex

Estimated Daily Manure Production of About 30 Tons... Transition Committee Says, "Farm Owners Must Present Solutions for Odor"

The Yanggu County Governor Transition Committee is holding an emergency meeting related to the pig farming complex on the 27th. [Yanggu County Governor Transition Committee]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] Seo Heung-won, the elected mayor of Yanggu County, announced on the 28th that he will "strongly order the relevant departments of the county office to take administrative measures on the premise of closing the pig farming complex located in Chang-ri, the geographic center of the country."

On the 27th, during an emergency meeting of the transition committee held to discuss measures for the pig farming complex, Seo said, "After seeing it with my own eyes, the pig farming complex has become not a farm raising pigs but a garbage site of abuse," adding, "Anyone who has seen it firsthand will not be able to eat pork."

He continued, "Upon taking office, I will receive a progress report from the relevant departments and then disclose the progress to the residents."

The transition committee members also pointed out, "It is unacceptable that the pig farming complex has been making money despite the residents suffering from foul odors, while ignoring social responsibility," and urged, "The reality of the pig farming complex must be disclosed through various means, and the farm owners must resolve the odor issue that many residents endure despite the damage."

According to Seo and the transition committee members who visited the pig farming complex directly on the 22nd, the breeding environment of the farm was very poor, with pigs rolling around in the old pigsties along with pig manure.

Seo and the transition committee estimated that the problematic pig farming complex is a large-scale farm equipped with 20 pigsties, raising about 6,000 pigs, producing approximately 30 tons of pig manure daily, and about 10,000 tons annually.

In particular, due to African Swine Fever, pig manure from the pig farming complex cannot be transported outside, and the farm's own manure treatment capacity has already exceeded its limit. The resulting foul odor spreads to the urban area of Yanggu-eup, causing great inconvenience to many residents.

Meanwhile, Yanggu County has been investing 550 million won of county funds since 2019 in various projects such as operating an odor reduction quarantine team, distributing odor-reducing microorganisms, and conducting surveys related to livestock odor.