Foreign Rice Cultivation Area Reduced from 11% to 4%... Rural Development Administration: "Domestic New Varieties Increase Farmer Income and Improve Rice Taste"

The cultivation area of foreign rice varieties such as Koshihikari and Akibare has decreased to about half over the past seven years.

On the 13th, the Rural Development Administration announced that according to the results of the 'Demand-Driven Rice Variety Development (SPP)' research conducted since 2016, the cultivation area of foreign rice varieties in Korea decreased from 11% in 2017 to the 4% range in 2024.

The Demand-Driven Rice Variety Development is a field-centered research program in which various stakeholders including local farmers, breeders, Rice Processing Complexes (RPC), and consumers directly participate in the entire process from developing and distributing rice varieties suited to regional characteristics to post-management.

To replace foreign rice varieties that have been conventionally cultivated for a long time despite being vulnerable to pests, diseases, and lodging with domestic varieties, the Rural Development Administration expanded the research from Icheon, Gyeonggi Province in 2016 to five local governments including Gimpo, Ganghwa, Pocheon, and Yeoju. In 2022, Icheon City in Gyeonggi Province completely replaced the raw materials for its regional representative product, 'Imgeumnampyo Icheon Rice,' from Koshihikari and Akibare (Chucheong) to domestic varieties Haedeul and Alchanmi.

An official from the Rural Development Administration explained, "The success case in Icheon City became an opportunity to spread to major foreign rice cultivation areas such as Pocheon and Gimpo in Gyeonggi Province, Ganghwa in Incheon, and Jincheon and Cheongju in Chungbuk," adding, "Since 2022, Pocheon City in Gyeonggi Province has replaced the raw materials of the regional product Gichan Rice from Koshihikari to Haedeul, Alchanmi, and others."

This year, the cultivation area of these varieties was expanded to 2,000 hectares, four times more than last year. Ganghwa County in Incheon developed Nadeulmi as a new variety in 2022, and Gimpo City in Gyeonggi Province developed Hangadeuk in 2023, achieving a replacement of 20% (1,325 hectares) of the existing foreign rice cultivation area in the two regions.

Park Gido, head of the Central Crops Division at the Rural Development Administration, said, "The new varieties replacing foreign rice are resistant to lodging and diseases, have excellent taste, and are economically advantageous. Farmers find it easier to cultivate and can save costs on pesticides and fertilizers."

In fact, according to the 2021 economic analysis by the Rural Development Administration, the income of farms cultivating Alchanmi increased by about 3 million KRW per hectare compared to those cultivating the foreign rice Akibare. When converted to the 2024 cultivation area of Alchanmi, it is estimated to generate an economic effect of 72.4 billion KRW annually. The Rural Development Administration expects that as the cultivation area of Alchanmi increases and replaces Akibare, the economic ripple effect will grow even larger.

The Rural Development Administration plans to expand the number of highest-quality rice production and supply base complexes from 11 in 2020 to 50 nationwide by the end of this year through the new technology dissemination project. Along with this, it intends to reduce the cultivation area of foreign rice varieties to less than 10,000 hectares by 2027 in cooperation with local institutions such as the Gyeonggi-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services, local governments, and seed production organizations.

Park said, "By developing and distributing excellent domestic rice varieties through demand-driven rice variety development, we are able to farm safely despite frequent weather disasters and enhance the value of regional representative rice products," adding, "Through this, we will accelerate farm income generation and regional development and further strive to strengthen Korea's rice seed sovereignty."