The Largest Agricultural Fulfillment Demonstration Center Opens in Muan
Addressing Rural Labor Shortages and Maximizing Distribution Efficiency and Product Quality
Jeonnam Province is pioneering a new era of agricultural logistics automation by utilizing robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.
On September 24, Jeonnam Province held the opening ceremony for the Agricultural Fulfillment Demonstration Center at the Jeonnam Southwest Vegetable Agricultural Cooperative in Hyeongyeong-myeon, Muan. The province showcased advanced technologies for automating the logistics and distribution of agricultural products.
Fulfillment technology is a smart logistics system that automates and optimizes the entire logistics process for agricultural products, from receiving and sorting to packaging and shipping. By automatically sorting, packaging, and managing agricultural products to consistent quality and standards, it dramatically enhances distribution efficiency.
Approximately 200 people attended the opening ceremony, including officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Jeonnam Province, Muan County, the Jeonnam Southwest Vegetable Agricultural Cooperative, and research institutes. The event drew significant attention by demonstrating automated logistics technologies such as sorting and packaging for agricultural products on site, along with a commemorative performance.
The Demonstration Center was established at the Jeonnam Southwest Vegetable Agricultural Cooperative through the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs' "Smart Agricultural Product Distribution and Storage Technology Development Project" in 2022 and the "Agricultural Product Production Area Distribution Center Support Project" in 2023. Fifteen research institutes, including the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, jointly participated in developing the core fulfillment technologies.
A total project budget of 30.2 billion won (22.3 billion won from the national government, 1.7 billion won from the province, 3.2 billion won from the county, and 3 billion won from the cooperative) was invested. The center consists of one demonstration building (4 billion won), two cold storage facilities (5.5 billion won), and fulfillment technology research and development (20.7 billion won), covering a total area of 3,665 square meters, making it the largest of its kind in the country.
Key facilities include an AI deep learning-based camera sorting system, a non-destructive sorting system for detecting decayed agricultural products, a gripping-type Calista automatic sorting line, an automated net packaging system, an integrated control system, unmanned forklifts, and cleaning robots. By the end of this year, additional facilities such as a delta robot preprocessing line and a robotic palletizer will be installed.
The technology will be applied to three types of agricultural products: onions, sweet potatoes, and kabocha squash. The final goal is to commercialize these technologies by 2026 through further technological advancement and on-site demonstration.
Park Hyunsik, Director of the Agriculture, Livestock, and Food Bureau of Jeonnam Province, said, "We expect the Fulfillment Demonstration Center to play a significant role in enhancing the quality and distribution competitiveness of agricultural products from Jeonnam."
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