Hosting a Meeting with Agriculture Minister Song Miryung
Requesting Budget for Electric Agricultural Machinery Distribution and Other Issues
The small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) sector requested the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to promote K-Food by expanding import volumes of soybeans, starch, and other materials.
The Korea Federation of SMEs announced on the 27th that it held a ‘Meeting with Minister Song Mi-ryeong of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and SME Representatives’ at the Federation’s headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul.
The meeting was organized to listen to the on-site difficulties faced by SMEs related to agriculture and food and to discuss policy support measures.
From the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Minister Song attended along with Yang Ju-pil, Director of Food Industry Policy, and Choi Myung-chul, Director of Food Security Policy. From the SME sector, about 15 representatives from various food manufacturing and agro-livestock industries attended, including Kim Ki-moon, Chairman of the Korea Federation of SMEs; Kim Shin-gil, Chairman of the Korea Agricultural Machinery Industry Cooperative; Kim Seok-won, Chairman of the Gwangju Jeonnam Yeon Food Industry Cooperative; Choi Sun-yoon, Chairman of the Gangwon-do Yeon Food Cooperative; and Lee Young-joo, Chairman of the Korea Rice Cake and Mixed Powder Industry Cooperative.
The SME representatives proposed a total of 11 industry issues, including ‘Improvement of import systems for key raw materials such as soybeans and starch to foster K-Food,’ ‘Budget request for the electric agricultural machinery distribution project,’ ‘Expansion of drainage facilities and automatic water level gauges to respond to abnormal weather,’ and ‘Realistic conditions for participation of small and medium-sized marts in agricultural and livestock product discount support projects.’
Chairman Kim Ki-moon said, “Now that K-Food is gaining global attention, this is an opportunity for the agriculture and food industry to emerge as a new leading export industry for our country,” adding, “Active support from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs is needed, such as expanding the budget for smart factory construction projects to support innovation in food manufacturing SMEs.”
He further added, “It is necessary to expand direct soybean supply, a long-standing issue for the food manufacturing industry, to stably secure the main raw materials for K-Food.”
Minister Song said, “Innovation that integrates advanced technology is more important than ever for the growth and global competitiveness of SMEs related to food manufacturing and agriculture,” and added, “We will actively reflect the voices heard today from the field in our policies and continue to provide support to foster the growth of SMEs related to agriculture and food.”
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