Imsil-gun to Distribute 'Farmer Public Interest Allowance' of 600,000 Won per Household Before Chuseok

Imsil-gun, Jeonbuk, will provide a total of 3.3 billion KRW in Farmers' Public Interest Allowance ahead of the Chuseok holiday.

According to the county on the 14th, the Farmers' Public Interest Allowance is a program implemented since 2020 to promote the public functions of agriculture and rural areas and to create a sustainable agricultural and rural environment.

The county will pay a total of about 3.3 billion KRW in Farmers' Public Interest Allowance to 5,567 recipients, with 600,000 KRW per farm, starting today.

The support targets are farms that have had a residence and agricultural management entity in the province continuously for more than two years before December 31, 2020, and actually cultivate 1,000㎡ or more.

Beekeepers must have been registered as beekeepers in the province’s cities and counties by December 31, 2022, and must raise bees above the registration standards in the province (10 native bee colonies, 30 Western bee colonies, or 30 mixed colonies).

The county accepted applications from February to April and finalized the recipients through qualification verification.

The Farmers' Public Interest Allowance can be used throughout Imsil-gun except for some restricted sectors such as entertainment establishments, home shopping, health insurance premiums, and taxi fares.

In particular, unlike local currency, it can be used at franchise stores with annual sales exceeding 3 billion KRW.

Recipients can visit the town or township office to receive an anonymous prepaid card (two cards worth 300,000 KRW each), and the prepaid card usage period is until August 31, 2024.

After receiving the Farmers' Public Interest Allowance, farms must comply with basic obligations such as appropriate use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, maintaining the shape and function of farmland such as rice paddies and fields, maintaining beekeeping operations, ensuring the safety of beekeeping products, and controlling bee pests and diseases.

If these obligations are not met, the allowance must be returned, and if not returned, participation in the program will be restricted from the following year until the return is completed.

County Governor Sim Min said, “By providing the Farmers' Public Interest Allowance before Chuseok, we hope to offer some help to farms and revitalize the local economy. We will continue to do our best to improve the quality of life for farmers and create a region where farmers live well and happily.”

Imsil = Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Nosik baekok@asiae.co.kr