Hapcheon-gun Finalizes Re-selection of 8 Views, 8 Products, and 8 Flavors

Expectations for Enhancing Regional Brand Image and Revitalizing Tourism

Hapcheon-gun in Gyeongnam has reselected the Hapcheon 8 Views (景), 8 Products (品), and 8 Flavors (味) considering the latest tourism and consumption trends.

On the 17th, the county announced that through surveys and opinion gathering from various groups including residents and hometown visitors, as well as the final review by the County Administration Adjustment Committee, the Hapcheon 8 Views (景), 8 Products (品), and 8 Flavors (味) were reselected.

For the Hapcheon 8 Views, factors such as world-class cultural heritage, representativeness of the nation and region, and rarity difficult to find in other areas were considered, resulting in the selection of ▲ Gayasan and Haeinsa ▲ Sorigil and Hongryudong Valley ▲ Hwangmaesan Four Seasons ▲ Hapcheon Lake and Baekri Cherry Blossom Road ▲ Hapcheon Film Theme Park ▲ Hapcheon Meteorite Impact Crater ▲ Okcheon Tumuli ▲ Jeongyangswamp Ecological Park.

Hapcheon County Office building.

For the Hapcheon 8 Products, considerations included cultivation area, production volume, market share, premium brand development items, and residents' income increase, leading to the selection of ▲ Hapcheon Hwangto Hanwoo (Korean beef) ▲ Hapcheon Simbau Pork ▲ Hapcheon Yeongho Jinmi ▲ Hapcheon Onion ▲ Hapcheon Garlic ▲ Apple Watermelon ▲ Hapcheon Melon ▲ Yangtteok Rice Cake Soup.

For the Hapcheon 8 Flavors, specialized foods with competitive advantages over other regions were selected: ▲ Hapcheon Beef ▲ Hapcheon Samgyeopsal (pork belly) ▲ Hapcheon Pork Soup Rice ▲ Freshwater Spicy Fish Stew and Steamed Catfish ▲ Yulpi Rice Cake and Chestnut Pie ▲ Mountain Vegetable Set Menu ▲ Hapcheon Hangwa (traditional Korean sweets) ▲ Hapcheon Makgeolli.

The representative 8 Views were adjusted by integrating those within the same area, and Mosaengjae of Hwangmaesan was renamed Hwangmaesan Four Seasons to reflect the diverse seasonal attractions such as azaleas and silver grass.

Additionally, Hapcheon Film Theme Park and Meteorite Impact Crater were newly selected reflecting the latest tourism trends and future growth potential. The Okcheon Tumuli, a world cultural heritage site, and Jeongyangswamp Ecological Park, a wetland with high ecological preservation value, were also newly selected.

The existing Namsan Jeilbong was excluded as it belongs to Gayasan National Park, and Hambyeokru and Hwanggye Waterfall, although still valuable as representative landscapes, were excluded to diversify tourism in line with the latest trends.

The representative 8 Products changed the existing Hapcheon native pork to Simbau Pork, a high-quality pork brand fed with red ginseng registered with the Korean Intellectual Property Office and supplied nationwide, and renamed Hapcheon rice to Hapcheon Yeongho Jinmi to foster it as a premium brand for competitiveness.

Also newly selected were Yangtteok Rice Cake Soup, which successfully established Hapcheon Village and village enterprises with the fourth largest cultivation area nationwide, Apple Watermelon accounting for 55% of national production, and Hapcheon Melon, which has a sugar content of 18.6 Brix and a softer, crispier texture than melons from other regions.

Ice strawberries, which ceased production after 2021, Hapcheon wheat used entirely as processed raw material, Hapcheon pottery, and Hapcheon paprika, whose producers and farmers have sharply declined, were excluded.

For the representative 8 Flavors, foods made from the same ingredients were integrated, and native pork soup rice was renamed Hapcheon Pork Soup Rice to promote the Hapcheon brand.

Hapcheon Samgyeopsal and Hapcheon Beef, famous nationwide for their price competitiveness and excellent taste, were added, along with chestnut-processed foods from Hapcheon, such as chestnut shell rice cake and chestnut pie, from one of the four major national production areas. Songgi rice cake and chestnut jelly, which are difficult to source raw materials for and have almost ceased production due to labor shortages, were excluded.

Lee Seon-gi, Deputy County Governor and Chair of the County Administration Adjustment Committee, said, “We plan to organize and promote the reselected Hapcheon 8 Views, 8 Products, and 8 Flavors through various online and offline methods such as promotional materials, websites, and SNS. We will designate responsible departments for each field to strengthen management and development, and do our best to inform residents and tourists of Hapcheon’s charm by linking with diverse content.”