[Click e-Stock] "Woomzipham Rises as a Leading K-Smart Farm Pioneer"

On May 28, KB Securities analyzed that Woomzipham is establishing itself as a leading company in K-crops and K-smart farms, heightening expectations for its global expansion.

Woomzipham produces the stevia tomato 'Tomango' based on its proprietary technology, creating higher added value compared to regular tomatoes. Through this, Woomzipham has established a stable revenue base and is diversifying and expanding its portfolio by entering the European vegetable and bio businesses, as well as increasing sales from smart farm construction and related technologies.

Last year, Woomzipham recorded sales of 63.9 billion won (up 12.9% year-on-year), operating profit of 3.6 billion won (up 5.9%), and net profit of 2.9 billion won (up 102.1%), achieving visible growth in terms of performance.

Lim Sanguk, a researcher at KB Securities, stated, "The core of future agriculture lies in the convergence with the cultivation of high value-added crops using smart farms," adding, "Expectations for the global expansion of Woomzipham, a leading company in K-crops and K-smart farms, are growing."

Amid rapid aging in rural areas, domestic and international demand for smart farms, which have proven high productivity and efficiency, is expected to gradually increase. Woomzipham, which has vertically integrated the smart farm value chain (installation, construction, cultivation, processing, and sales), is expected to be a direct beneficiary. The company is currently preparing to export smart farms beyond Korea to the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Another strength of Woomzipham is that, based on its solid cash cow, the stevia tomato 'Tomango', it is pursuing crop diversification and improving profit margins. Lim pointed out, "Profitability is expected to improve through crop diversification, including the cultivation of European vegetables such as romaine and butterhead," and added, "As the era of zero calories arrives, demand for stevia agricultural products, including stevia tomatoes, is expected to increase."

As a future mid- to long-term growth driver, the creation of the Seosan Smart Farm Agricultural Bio Complex is being discussed. Although it has not yet been finalized, if the complex is established, annual sales of more than 25 billion won are expected through the cultivation of various fruits and vegetables. Regarding this, Lim stated, "If the smart farm is established, we plan to start with the cultivation of cherry and fully ripened tomatoes, and gradually expand to a wider variety of fruits and vegetables."