Sunchang County Designated as 'North Jeolla Functional Food Regulation-Free Special Zone'

Fermented Microorganism Industry Promotion Foundation and Fermented Microorganism Industrialization Center
Designated as North Jeolla Functional Food Regulation-Free Special Zone
Demonstration project for shared GMP factory to begin...
Expected to strengthen the foundation of the domestic functional food industry

The Foundation for the Promotion of Fermented Microorganism Industry and the Fermented Microorganism Industrialization Center in Sunchang County, North Jeolla Province, have been designated as the 'Functional Food Regulation-Free Special Zone of North Jeolla Special Self-Governing Province' by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Foundation for the Promotion of Fermented Microorganism Industry building. Provided by Sunchang County

According to the county on June 11, following this designation, a demonstration research and development project for operating a GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) shared factory for the production of microorganism-based health functional foods will be fully launched over the next three years.

The 'Health Functional Food Shared Factory Demonstration Project' is designed to verify a shared model in which multiple companies can jointly use the equipment and processes necessary for the production of functional foods. Through the regulation-free special zone system, simplified safety and functionality evaluation procedures will be applied compared to the existing standards.

Through this, it is expected that the entire process of functional food development?from verifying the practical applicability of health functional ingredients, to setting standard specifications, and commercialization?can be validated in real-world environments.

The county plans to collaborate with three companies?Hanpoong Pharmaceutical, Saint Mario Farm, and BioDot?located in the Knowledge Industrialization Center within the special zone, to carry out demonstration production of probiotics and red yeast rice-based health functional foods using the specialized equipment of the Fermented Microorganism Industrialization Center. Through this process, the product lineup is expected to diversify, and higher added value can be achieved.

If this demonstration project is successfully implemented, it will open the way for small food venture companies to enter the health functional food market without high initial investments, and the foundation of the domestic functional food industry is expected to become even stronger.

Choi Youngil, Governor of Sunchang County, stated, "With this special zone designation, Sunchang County has established a foundation to lead the future food industry for the next 100 years based on the microorganism food industry," and added, "We will continue to secure a leading position in the microorganism-based health functional ingredient market, foster the related industrial ecosystem in Sunchang, and accelerate the revitalization of the local economy and the development of high-value-added food industries."