Nonsan City Tops Chungcheong Region with 1.4 Billion Won in Hometown Love Donations Last Year

218% Increase from 2023... 13,723 Participants Join

Nonsan City in South Chungcheong Province announced on the 9th that it raised 1.418 billion won in Hometown Love Donations last year.

This is a 218% increase compared to 650 million won in 2023, with 13,723 people participating. Among local governments in the Chungcheong region, Nonsan ranked first in fundraising for two consecutive years.

For the Hometown Love Donation Program, most donors contributed small amounts compared to other municipalities.

By region, 50% of donors were from the Seoul metropolitan area, including Gyeonggi-do and Seoul, and about 80% were in their 20s to 40s.

The city assessed that the Hometown Love Donation Program confirmed Nonsan’s potential and possibilities, and that the joint agricultural brand “Yukgunbyeongjang” helped promote excellent local agricultural products nationwide.

The most popular return gifts were strawberries, pork belly, Ganggyeong jeotgal, and traditional liquor, in that order. In particular, the city’s signature specialty, strawberries, maintained their freshness with patented packaging technology for the Seolhyang and Vitaberry varieties, increasing donor satisfaction.

The city appointed discharged soldiers as honorary citizens and opened the Strawberry Scent Theme Park water playground to the public for free, focusing efforts on attracting tourists. As a result, the city analyzed that it created a virtuous cycle linking local agricultural product consumption and hometown love donations.

Mayor Baek Seonghyeon said, “I believe the love for their hometown, the value of Nonsan’s strawberries and other agricultural products, and the expectations for Nonsan as a leader in the national defense and fisheries industry all moved donors’ hearts and led to donations,” adding, “We will use these funds to enhance the value of the local community and brighten Nonsan’s future.”