Sancheong-gun Expands Public Meal Services... Strengthens Supply Network Centered on Food Integrated Support Center

Expanding to 26 Institutions, Supplying 4,033 Meals Daily
Participation from 27 Farms Accelerates Local Mutual Growth

Sancheong-gun in South Gyeongsang Province is expanding public meal service supply, centering on its local food platform, the "Sancheong-gun Food Integrated Support Center."

Beginning in March, Sancheong-gun announced that it will increase the number of institutions eligible for public meal service, supplying local agricultural products to a total of 26 locations. Newly included facilities are Gyeongnam Nursing High School and the Sancheong-gun Office cafeteria.

The scale of supply will also expand. The number of daily meal recipients will increase from the previous 1,859 people (3,685 meals) to 2,325 people (4,033 meals). In particular, at five boarding schools-Sancheong Middle School, Sancheong High School, Gandhi High School, Jirisan High School, and Gyeongnam Nursing High School-three meals are provided each day, making it even more important to establish a stable food ingredient supply system.

Sancheong County, Exterior View of the Food Integration Support Center Photo

The county has also selected additional participating farms and food items. Currently, 27 farms supply 46 different items, further strengthening the foundation for local agricultural products.

Through this initiative, the plan is to provide fresh food ingredients to schools and institutions, while securing stable sales channels for farms.

Starting this year, the center will directly implement the fruit snack support program for daycare centers. Seasonal fruit will be supplied weekly to 190 children at six daycare centers in the area, aiming to enhance children's health and stabilize farm income at the same time.

A county official stated, "Through the expanded operation, we can now stably supply local agricultural products to more schools and institutions," adding, "We will strengthen a sustainable virtuous cycle food system centered on the center, with farms, schools, and the local government working together."

Meanwhile, Sancheong-gun began construction of the Sancheong-gun Food Integrated Support Center in December 2023, and has since laid the policy groundwork by forming a Food Committee in September 2024. The county has been gradually building a center-based public meal service supply network through steps such as forming a producers' association, signing food ingredient supply agreements for school meals, selecting qualified suppliers for each food group (nine in total), and holding meetings with stakeholders.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.