Mayor Kim "Grateful to Paju farmers who have protected agriculture despite monsoon and heatwaves"
Focusing on establishing a 'rural-urban win-win virtuous cycle' system through innovation in rural-urban distribution systems
Kim Kyung-il, Mayor of Paju City, received the ‘2024 Agricultural Development Innovation Award’ on the 5th at the main auditorium of the NongHyup Central Association headquarters for his contributions to agricultural development.
Kim Kyung-il, Mayor of Paju City, is taking a commemorative photo after receiving the '2024 Agricultural Development Innovation Award' for his contributions to agricultural advancement at the main auditorium of the NongHyup Central Association on the 5th. Photo by Paju City
According to Paju City on the 6th, the Agricultural Development Innovation Award is given by the NongHyup Central Association to local government heads who have contributed to the development of regional agriculture by discovering and promoting various agricultural policies. This year, a total of eight recipients were selected.
Since taking office in the 8th term of the elected government, Mayor Kim Kyung-il of Paju City has focused on fostering the local food industry and establishing a ‘win-win virtuous cycle’ system between urban and rural areas through innovation in distribution systems under the vision of ‘Paju, where urban and rural areas coexist sustainably as a rural community.’
In particular, the local food complex center construction project promoted by the city is a strategic plan to capture two goals: revitalizing regional agriculture and supplying fresh agricultural and livestock products for urban residents, reflecting the characteristics of Paju City as a mixed urban-rural city. To this end, the city plans to invest a total project cost of 12 billion KRW to build the complex center near Unjeong Lake Park, aiming for completion in the first half of 2026.
Additionally, to actively address the rice industry’s difficulties caused by insufficient rice consumption, Paju City has collaborated with NongHyup to establish 10 ‘Local Rice Zones’ in NongHyup Hanaro Marts within the jurisdiction, where Paju rice can be purchased at discounted prices to promote domestic consumption of rice produced in the Paju area. Various measures to stimulate consumption are also being implemented, including support for the price difference at restaurants using Paju rice, a certification system for using Paju rice, and public media promotions on buses and taxis.
Furthermore, Paju City achieved a milestone this year by harvesting the first-ever inter-Korean hybrid rice variety, Pyeongwon rice, and commercializing it under the brand name ‘Peace Smile’ as fresh rice for Chuseok, achieving a complete sell-out.
Mayor Kim Kyung-il of Paju City said, “I believe the award I received today is an award given to the farmers of Paju City,” and added, “I express my gratitude and respect to the farmers who have protected Paju’s agriculture despite the rainy season and heat waves.”
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