Yoon Byung-tae, mayor of Naju City in Jeollanam-do, personally took on the challenge of targeting the Oceania market to secure sales channels for local agricultural and marine products.
Naju City, Jeollanam-do, announced on the 26th that Mayor Yoon Byung-tae visited Australia and New Zealand from the 19th to the 25th for a 5-night, 7-day trip to promote and market Naju’s agricultural and marine product exports.
During this visit, Mayor Yoon achieved the signing of export agreements (MOUs) worth $9.7 million with two companies in Australia and two companies in New Zealand.
The delegation accompanying Mayor Yoon on the Australia and New Zealand trip included City Council member Choi Jung-gi, representatives from the Naju City Cooperative Joint Corporation, Rice Cooperative Joint Business Corporation, Naju Pear Horticultural Cooperative, Wando Trading Company, Samjin GF representatives and staff, Pear Horticultural Distribution Department employees, totaling 14 people.
On the third day of the visit, the 21st, Mayor Yoon signed a two-year export promotion agreement worth $3 million with ‘SHIN MI AUSTRALIA P/L,’ a local distributor in Sydney, Australia.
The export items include five products produced in Naju: pears, pear juice, rice, gim (seaweed), and kimchi.
Following this, an export agreement was reached with ‘BAE JUICE,’ headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, represented by Do Su-min, for $3 million over two years to export pear juice made from Naju pears.
Pear juice has gained sensational popularity as a beverage reputed for its excellent hangover relief effects in Australia, the United States, and other countries.
In New Zealand, on the 23rd, a two-year export agreement worth $2 million was signed with Auckland distributor ‘Asian Savour World Pty, Ltd’ for five products including Naju pears, rice, and gim. On the same day, a three-year export agreement worth $1.7 million was signed with ‘The First International’ for the export of 1,000 tons of Naju rice, marking valuable results from their on-the-ground sales efforts.
Since the first export of the Naju rice variety ‘Saechungmu’ to New Zealand in February this year, which has become very popular locally, this export agreement is expected to further accelerate the entry of Naju’s agricultural and marine products into the Oceania market.
Through this export agreement, Naju City has achieved export contract results worth $28.7 million (approximately 37.7 billion KRW) since the launch of the 8th local government administration.
In particular, the total export value of Naju’s agricultural and marine products in 2023 reached about 10 billion KRW, accounting for 13.3% of Jeollanam-do’s total export value of approximately 750 billion KRW.
Alongside the export agreements, the planned promotional events for agricultural and marine products in Australia and New Zealand also attracted significant local interest.
On the 21st, Mayor Yoon and the delegation actively promoted the excellent taste and quality of five agricultural and marine products?pears, pear juice, rice, gim, and kimchi?through tasting and giveaway events at ‘Tongli Market’ in Sydney, Australia, and on the 23rd at ‘Wangfu Market’ in Auckland, New Zealand.
Additionally, on the 24th, a dinner meeting was held with Consul General Kim Hong-gi of the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Auckland to discuss ways to revitalize exports and secure sales channels for Naju’s agricultural and marine products.
Mayor Yoon Byung-tae of Naju City stated, “We will do our best to enhance the quality of agricultural and marine products, expand export markets, secure stable sales channels that form the foundation of agricultural management, and increase farmers’ income to strengthen the competitiveness of Naju agriculture.”
He added, “Korean food products such as soju and ramen are gaining great popularity in local export markets. I hope our local companies will strive to improve and manage the quality of not only fresh agricultural products but also secondary processed foods made from Naju rice, such as rice cakes, scorched rice, and Sikhye, to pioneer overseas sales channels.”
Naju = Kim Yuk-bong, Honam Reporting Headquarters, Asia Economy, bless4ya@asiae.co.kr
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