Incheon Namdong-gu Conducts Weekly On-Site Inspections
Fully Prepared to Restore Merchants' Trust
As the Incheon Soraepogu Festival, a representative seafood festival in the Seoul metropolitan area, takes place, fish market merchants and Namdong-gu, Incheon, have made thorough preparations to restore broken trust.
Merchants at the traditional market in Soraepogu, Namdong-gu, Incheon, are holding a midnight meeting, promising to restore trust and offering apologies. [Image source=Yonhap News]
On the 28th, Yonhap News TV and News1 reported that merchants took charge of self-management during the three-day Soraepogu Festival held until the 29th. Due to the 'overcharging controversy' that severely damaged Soraepogu's image, merchant education was conducted three times this year, and regular inspections of origin and freshness were carried out. This year's Soraepogu Festival is seen as an opportunity to eradicate the overcharging controversy. In fact, it is known that citizens have a high interest in the festival. It is expected that more than 450,000 people will visit during the festival period. Fish market merchant A said, "We worked hard with the merchants to restore trust," adding, "I hope many customers will visit through this festival." Park Jonghyo, head of Namdong-gu Office in Incheon, said, "Because we have a dream to be a hope and comfort to the 26 million residents of the metropolitan area, there will be no situations that you are worried about," and added, "I hope you visit our Sorae with peace of mind."
YouTuber 'Saengseon Seonsaeng Mister S' uploaded a video showing a vendor at Incheon Soraepogu Fish Market asking 370,000 won for two king crabs. [Image source=YouTube capture]
Earlier in March, a video circulated showing a demand for 370,000 won for two snow crabs at Soraepogu, reigniting the 'overcharging fee controversy.' Although a self-purification meeting was held in June last year to eradicate 'soliciting customers, mixed sales, and overcharging fees,' and an apology was made with a deep bow, the overcharging controversy occurred again. Subsequently, controversies such as 'legless blue crabs' and 'verbal abuse' continued, leading to a dominant public opinion that trust in the Soraepogu fish market had declined.
In response, Namdong-gu, Incheon, has conducted weekly on-site inspections at the Soraepogu fish market since March, issuing a total of 150 administrative actions including fines and improvement orders. The district identified 61 plate-type scales (measuring devices) that displayed weights different from the actual weight and issued improvement orders. Seventeen fish market businesses that did not label the origin of seafood were fined between 50,000 and 90,000 won each. Three businesses violated the regulation requiring an annual health checkup and were fined between 160,000 and 200,000 won. Additionally, one case each of false origin labeling and kitchen cleanliness violations were detected, resulting in corrective actions and fines of 250,000 won each.
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