540,000 Tons Produced, 840.8 Billion Won in Value
Production Volume Up 32%, Value Up 5% Year-on-Year
On May 13, Jeonnam Province announced that the total production volume of raw gim (seaweed) in the Jeonnam region for the 2025 season reached 540,000 tons, with a production value of 840.8 billion won, achieving the highest auction record in history.
According to Jeonnam Province, the production of raw gim for the 2025 season concluded on May 9. By city and county, the production volumes were 167,000 tons in Goheung, 139,000 tons in Jindo, and 86,000 tons in Wando, in that order.
In terms of production value, Jindo led with 249 billion won, followed by Goheung with 231.2 billion won, and Wando with 128.6 billion won. Jeonnam accounted for 78% of the national production volume and 81% of the production value, driving the growth of Korea’s gim industry.
This year, the production volume increased significantly by 32% compared to last year. However, the production value rose by only 5%, which was somewhat disappointing.
This was mainly due to a sharp increase in production volume as relatively stable ocean conditions were maintained at the beginning of the year, and a temporary drop in auction prices caused by a flood of shipments.
Additionally, at the beginning of the fishing season when Itbadidol gim is harvested, high water temperatures led to a decrease in production volume and a sharp rise in auction prices.
With price volatility increasing due to supply and demand fluctuations in each fishing season, there is a growing need to manage supply and demand and to respond to climate change.
In response, Jeonnam Province is carefully considering measures to guide appropriate production levels and stabilize prices. The province plans to actively pursue policies to improve the structure of the gim industry, including reorganizing illegal aquaculture farms, upgrading dried gim processing plant facilities, and establishing large-scale logistics complexes (FDC·FPC) dedicated to dried gim.
Meanwhile, Jeonnam Province is providing 20.5 billion won in support for seven projects, including smart gim seed cultivation facilities, to ensure stable gim production and increase fishermen’s income. In particular, the 'Development of a New Gim Activation Treatment Agent' project is scheduled for completion this year and is expected to contribute to the production of high-quality gim and strengthen the industry’s competitiveness by supplying it to aquaculture farms in the future.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
