Yanggu County Achieves 'Excellence Award for Two Consecutive Years' at Agricultural Environment Conservation Program Best Practices Competition

Yanggu County in Gangwon Province won the Excellence Award for the second consecutive year at the "2025 Agricultural Environment Conservation Program" Best Practices Competition held at OSCO in Cheongju on the 10th.

Yanggu County won the Excellence Award for the second consecutive year at the "2025 Agricultural Environment Conservation Program" Best Practices Competition held at OSCO in Cheongju on the 10th. Provided by Yanggu County

The Best Practices Competition for the Agricultural Environment Conservation Program is hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and organized by the Korea Rural Community Corporation. The competition aims to discover and promote exemplary practices that improve the agricultural environment, thereby raising environmental awareness among farmers and publicizing the achievements of the program.

This year, out of 39 villages nationwide participating in the Agricultural Environment Conservation Program to promote eco-friendly agriculture, six villages were recognized, with Yanggu County's Eco-Friendly Agriculture District being the only recipient from the province.

The Yanggu County Eco-Friendly Agriculture District is a large-scale eco-friendly area comprising five administrative villages in three towns: Guktojeongjungang-myeon, Bangsan-myeon, and Haean-myeon. Since 2022, it has been carrying out various eco-friendly agricultural activities under the vision of "Clean Yanggu, Youthful Yanggu" to realize a pristine Yanggu.

Major activities include individual efforts such as autumn plowing of rice paddies, removing weeds without herbicides, and applying biochar (a soil environment enhancer), as well as community-based initiatives like creating shared landscapes to restore a sense of community-demonstrating a wide range of eco-friendly agricultural practices.

This year, 50 farmers participated in these eco-friendly agricultural activities, an increase of 28% compared to the program's early stages. The area of participation also grew by 49.2%, from 65.4 hectares to 97.6 hectares. In addition, the number of participants in community activities rose by 316.6%, from a cumulative total of 144 to 600, reflecting significant growth.

At this year's competition, the Yanggu County Eco-Friendly Agriculture District received positive evaluations in all areas, including soil, ecology & air, water resources, landscape & heritage, and residents' awareness of environmental improvement, earning the Excellence Award for the second consecutive year.

Kim Sanghun, Director of the Agricultural Technology Center, stated, "This award is the result of the efforts of local farmers dedicated to agricultural environment conservation. We will continue striving to create a clean and vibrant agricultural environment in Yanggu, a place for both cleanliness and youth."