Mandatory Seedling Business Registration Training, 4 Sessions This Year for a Total of 400 Participants

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Kim Hyewon] The National Seed Management Office announced the training schedule for new registrants in the seedling cultivation business this year on the 29th.

According to the Seed Industry Act, those who wish to engage in the seedling cultivation business, which involves germinating seeds and growing them into seedlings for sale, must complete at least 16 hours of training provided by professional training institutions (National Seed Management Office, Seoul National University, Wonkwang University, Kyungpook National University). Facilities such as steel greenhouses must also be established and registered with the relevant local government.

This year's training will be conducted in-person following the easing of COVID-19 social distancing measures. The sessions will be held four times in total: at Wonkwang University (March), National Seed Management Office (May), Seoul National University (July), and Kyungpook National University (October), with 100 participants per session. The training fee is uniformly 120,000 KRW regardless of the institution.

The new registrant course for the seedling cultivation business covers related regulations necessary for managing a seedling nursery, understanding the seedling industry, nursery environment management, seedling production and pest control, and smart greenhouse utilization technologies. During the course, opportunities to acquire new technologies through visits to advanced nurseries will also be provided.

The first training session of the year (1st session) will be held at Wonkwang University from March 9 to 10. Companies and farmers wishing to participate in this training can apply via email or fax from February 1 to February 28.

An Hyung-geun, head of the National Seed Management Office Education Center, stated, "For the development of the seedling industry, it is important to modernize aging nurseries with smart technologies and integrate new technologies to supply healthy seedlings that farmers can cultivate with confidence. This training course will be very helpful for companies and farmers who want to newly register in the seedling cultivation business."

As of 2021, the number of registered seedling cultivation businesses totaled 2,391, increasing at an average annual rate of 16.7% from 2018 to 2021. By crop type, vegetable crops accounted for the largest share at 50.7% (1,212 businesses), followed by food crops at 36.8% (880 businesses), and floricultural crops at 12.5% (299 businesses).