Young farmers reaping profit with 'ICT farming'

The Dong-A Ilbo and Channel A are hosting Korea's largest farming exhibition "2016 A Farm Show - Venture & Back-to-Farming Exhibition" from Friday, where many young farmers leading the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) farming; namely, smart farm, have attended the exhibition. Thanks to smart farm, tech-savvy young Koreans are drawn to farming. Compared to greenhouse and indoor horticulture facilities with an average age of 62.1, household members in domestic smart farms are four years younger in average (58.4), and have 4.4 years less experience in farming. Nonetheless, despite the gaps in age and experience, smart farmers showed 29.4 percent higher productivity and earned 46.8 percent higher in total income, according to an analysis on economic impacts of smart farms conducted by Seoul National University researchers in last November .

Young farmers at the 3-day long exhibition all agreed that farming is an area where our ICT skills and creativity can shine the brightest. Farming as a family business is also inherited in a seamless manner. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, agricultural entrepreneurs aged 30 or younger nearly doubled from 9.3 percent in 2014 to 16.7 percent in 2015. During her congratulatory speech, President Park Geun-hye said, "I am confident that Korea will make quantum leaps into the future when our world's best ICT is combined with the 'can-do' spirit that revitalized our rural community in the past." President Park offered her encouragement as she visited booths including Maeil Dairies, which opened an agriculture theme park Sangha Farm, and an mobile application developer that showcased greenhouse management with a smartphone.

Marking its third year, the exhibition has been beyond a venue simply exhibiting "back-to-farms and villages," but also has opened an era of "venture farming" where young venture farmers and companies integrate latest business and technological know-how to agriculture. Furthermore, the number of visitors significantly is on the rise, attracting around 50,000 people last year. In addition, the opening ceremony held on Friday welcomed participants to nearly 170 booths from the early morning.

Above all, young farmers said that after their struggling city life, they were fascinated by making fruits from what they sowed in the peaceful environment. The future of Korea will still shine brightly once these young farmers continue to navigate by their own stars, regardless of what others say.