Crop Conversion for Kimchi Cabbage
Up to 4.5 Million Won per Hectare in Support
Jeonnam Province is implementing a crop conversion project to ensure appropriate production and stabilize supply and demand for kimchi cabbage, including conducting a survey on the "2025 autumn and winter cabbage cultivation intention area."
For open-field vegetables such as cabbage, garlic, and onions, which are prone to unstable supply and demand, overproduction leads to a drop in market prices. Because this is directly linked to farmers' incomes, the government has established supply and demand management guidelines and is closely monitoring the situation.
As kimchi-making culture has shifted from large-scale communal work to small family units, and as per capita kimchi consumption has decreased, cabbage consumption has also declined. This raises concerns about oversupply. To maintain appropriate cultivation areas and stabilize farm management, Jeonnam Province, a major cabbage-producing region, is taking the lead in these efforts.
The crop conversion support project targets plots that have cultivated cabbage in the past two years (2023-2024). If these plots are left fallow or converted to other crops such as oats or buckwheat, a subsidy of 4.5 million won per hectare will be provided.
However, items with unstable supply and demand such as garlic and onions are not eligible for support, and the maximum support per farm is limited to 2 hectares.
Jeonnam Province plans to identify the intended cabbage cultivation area in advance and, through collecting opinions from cabbage farmers in Haenam and Jindo and local government officials, will support the same scale as last year: 400 hectares and a project budget of 1.8 billion won.
Cabbage farmers in Haenam and Jindo saw price stabilization effects last year through the crop conversion support project. Because cabbage prices were high last year, farmers expect the cultivation area for kimchi cabbage to increase again this year, and they unanimously agree that this project is essential.
In fact, compared to 2022, when 359 hectares of cabbage were discarded at production sites due to oversupply, costing 5.3 billion won, the 2024 cabbage crop conversion project used 385 hectares and 1.7 billion won, saving 3.6 billion won in the budget while also improving supply stability and price support.
Yoo Deokgyu, Director of the Food and Horticulture Division of Jeonnam Province, said, "The crop conversion project has helped stabilize cabbage supply and demand, thereby preserving farmers' incomes, so we hope for active participation from the agricultural community. Along with cabbage crop conversion, we will also promote consumption to secure markets for salted cabbage and Namdo kimchi, making efforts to ensure stable sales channels."
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