Cheonan City Provides Workforce Support for 'Artificial Pollination' at Pear Orchards Where Honeybees Have Disappeared

Farmers Face Double Hardship with Crackdown on Illegal Foreign Workers
Mayor Park Sang-don and 153 Officials Deployed to Support

Public officials in Cheonan, Chungnam, have stepped up to assist pear farmers struggling to secure labor during the peak pear blossom blooming season by helping with artificial pollination.

On the 11th, according to the city, Mayor Park Sang-don, along with public officials, Cho Seung-guk, head of the Cheonan branch of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, and local agricultural cooperative representatives, visited a pear farm in Songdeok-ri, Seonghwan-eup to support artificial pollination work.

Seonghwan-eup in Cheonan is a representative pear production area. Since pear blossoms bloom for a short period, missing the artificial pollination timing can significantly reduce fruit set rates, greatly affecting the harvest volume.

Traditionally, pollination naturally occurs through honeybees, but due to the decline in honeybee populations, manual pollination is now being carried out.

In particular, because the period during which artificial pollination is possible is short, a large workforce is needed at once, causing significant difficulties in labor supply for farmers.

Moreover, recent crackdowns by the Ministry of Justice on illegal foreign residents in local pear orchards have further exacerbated labor supply challenges.

Since 2000, the city has been supporting artificial pollination labor assistance for 25 years. This year, 153 public officials from 14 departments will be deployed to support about 24 hectares of small-scale farms run by elderly and female farmers across 17 locations.

Additionally, until the 16th, support desks for labor assistance will be operated at administrative welfare centers in Seonghwan-eup, Seonggeo-eup, Jiksan-eup, and Ipjang-myeon, as well as at the Cheonan Pear Horticultural Cooperative.

Mayor Park Sang-don said, “It was a meaningful day to meet farmers on-site and directly experience the hardships of agricultural workers. Moving forward, we will listen carefully to farmers’ difficulties and put more effort into supporting them to maintain the prestigious reputation of Cheonan pears.”