Smart Farm Expansion Hub for Young Entrepreneur Farmers
[Goheung=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Shim Jeong-woo] The ‘Youth Startup Farmer Rental Smart Farm’ operated by Goheung-gun is playing a significant role as an incubator for prospective young farmers who wish to enter the agricultural sector by providing experience in smart farm management.
The Jeonnam Goheung Smart Farm Innovation Valley is an advanced agricultural convergence complex rapidly emerging as an alternative for rural modernization and competitiveness enhancement by integrating information and communication technology (ICT) and other technologies into agriculture. It is equipped with a support center, youth training practice greenhouse, youth rental smart farm, demonstration complex, heating and cooling facilities, and water purification facilities.
The "Youth Startup Farmer Rental Smart Farm" operated by Goheung-gun is playing a significant role as an incubator for smart farm management for prospective young farmers. Photo by Goheung-gun
At Building A of the Youth Rental Smart Farm, 11 graduates of the first cohort of the smart farm youth startup education program are gaining experience in smart farm management by receiving expert consulting on controlling temperature and humidity suitable for tomato growth, nutrient solution adjustment, and pest and disease control.
Although there were initial trials and errors due to high-temperature damage and agricultural water shortages, these issues were smoothly resolved through the efforts of the smart farm office and young farmers. Currently, a stable cultivation environment has been established by analyzing crop growth and environmental data.
The young farmers are aiming to harvest 800 tons of tomatoes, delivering about 250 tons so far to Seoul and Gyeonggi areas after the first harvest in November last year of long-term cultivation varieties such as cherry tomatoes and fully ripened tomatoes in a 6,000-pyeong glass greenhouse.
Kim Geon-ho, a graduate of the first cohort of the smart farm youth startup education, said, “I had many concerns about gaining farming experience after completing 20 months of theory and field-centered practical training at the smart farm youth startup incubation center, but renting the glass greenhouse at a low cost from the smart farm office has been very helpful. I want to gain diverse experiences during the three-year rental period and take a step closer to starting a smart farm business.”
A county official stated, “We will do our best to provide a place for smart farm education for young farmers and serve as a technology innovation platform so that young farmers can settle down stably.”
Meanwhile, the county plans to complete Buildings B and C of the Youth Rental Smart Farm by June this year without delay. In line with this, 12 top-performing graduates from the second cohort of the smart farm youth startup education program will be selected and offered glass greenhouses at affordable prices to provide smart farm farming opportunities to young startup farmers.
Goheung=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Shim Jeong-woo hss79@asiae.co.kr
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