Gyeonggi Province Announces Contest for Outstanding Food Bank/Market of the Year

Gyeonggi Province is holding a contest to select the 'Outstanding Food Bank/Market of the Year' until June 25.

The Outstanding Food Bank/Market of the Year program, now in its third year, aims to discover and promote exemplary cases of food banks, provide incentives, and support improvements to the working environment for both staff and users.

Selected sites will receive support for facility improvements or equipment purchases within a maximum of 20 million won, and will also be awarded a commendation from the provincial governor at the end of the year.

Any food bank or market registered in Gyeonggi Province as of the announcement date is eligible to apply.

Gyeonggi Provincial Government

Gyeonggi Province plans to provide incentives for outstanding cases, while also implementing a 'mentoring program' for sites that require operational improvements, with the goal of enhancing overall business capabilities.

The 'mentoring program', which has been in place since 2021, provides professional and systematic on-site support for basic sites that need operational or administrative improvements. The program directly reviews the overall operations of these basic sites, including facility and hygiene management, donor and user management, and the procedures for collecting and distributing donated food, in order to develop improvement plans.

This year, applications are being accepted on a rolling basis from March to November, and in-person training will be provided up to six times over a maximum period of three months.

Kim Hana, Director of Welfare at Gyeonggi Province, stated, "We will continue to support all basic food banks so that they can operate stably and professionally, by boosting morale through incentives for outstanding cases and providing tailored consulting for those in need of improvement."