Yeongcheon City selected as national pilot site for 'Smart Technology Model for Open-Field Farming'
KRW 4 billion to be invested from 2025 to 2026 - Deployment of five advanced technologies including unmanned sprayers and autonomous weeding robots
Gyeongsangbuk-do is set to introduce smart agricultural technology to peach cultivation. On May 21, the Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services announced the implementation of the “Smart Technology Convergence Model Project for Open-Field Farming” in response to changing agricultural environments, such as climate change and rural aging.
This project, part of a nationwide public offering by the Rural Development Administration, selected three locations across the country. Yeongcheon City, which has the largest peach cultivation area in Korea (1,778 ha), was chosen for the peach sector. A total of KRW 4 billion will be invested over two years, from 2025 to 2026.
The project aims to apply smart technology to major open-field crops to mitigate the impact of abnormal weather and pests, reduce labor, improve productivity, and ultimately stabilize farm operations and increase income.
The project will introduce five advanced technologies to 30 peach farms across a total of 37 hectares in Yeongcheon : ▲Automatic irrigation‧fertigation systems, ▲mobile hot-air frost fans, ▲unmanned pest monitoring traps, ▲GPS-based autonomous sprayers, and ▲autonomous weeding robots.
The Agricultural Research and Extension Services will provide customized consulting for each farm to help build an integrated smart farming model.
The adoption of these technologies is expected to reduce losses from pests and natural disasters by 30%, cut labor needs by up to 70%, decrease pesticide usage by 10%, and lower farming costs by KRW 360,000 per 10 ares. This would result in an estimated income increase of KRW 1.53 million per 10 ares.
If these technologies are applied to half of the total peach-growing area in the province (approximately 5,126 ha), the annual income for local farmers could increase by about KRW 78.4 billion.
To ensure effective implementation, the Agricultural Research and Extension Services has formed a "Smart Agriculture Technology Support Team" in collaboration with the Rural Development Administration, Yeongcheon City, and private companies to provide training and consulting tailored to each farm.
Jo Young-sook, Director of the Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services, stated, “This project will serve as a turning point in boosting the disaster resilience and productivity of peach farms, which are increasingly threatened by abnormal climate conditions,” adding, “We will continue to expand not only greenhouse-based smart farms but also open-field smart farming technologies throughout the province.”
Source: Gyeongsangbuk-do Provincial Government
KRW 4 billion to be invested from 2025 to 2026 - Deployment of five advanced technologies including unmanned sprayers and autonomous weeding robots
Gyeongsangbuk-do is set to introduce smart agricultural technology to peach cultivation. On May 21, the Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services announced the implementation of the “Smart Technology Convergence Model Project for Open-Field Farming” in response to changing agricultural environments, such as climate change and rural aging.
This project, part of a nationwide public offering by the Rural Development Administration, selected three locations across the country. Yeongcheon City, which has the largest peach cultivation area in Korea (1,778 ha), was chosen for the peach sector. A total of KRW 4 billion will be invested over two years, from 2025 to 2026.
The project aims to apply smart technology to major open-field crops to mitigate the impact of abnormal weather and pests, reduce labor, improve productivity, and ultimately stabilize farm operations and increase income.
The project will introduce five advanced technologies to 30 peach farms across a total of 37 hectares in Yeongcheon : ▲Automatic irrigation‧fertigation systems, ▲mobile hot-air frost fans, ▲unmanned pest monitoring traps, ▲GPS-based autonomous sprayers, and ▲autonomous weeding robots.
The Agricultural Research and Extension Services will provide customized consulting for each farm to help build an integrated smart farming model.
The adoption of these technologies is expected to reduce losses from pests and natural disasters by 30%, cut labor needs by up to 70%, decrease pesticide usage by 10%, and lower farming costs by KRW 360,000 per 10 ares. This would result in an estimated income increase of KRW 1.53 million per 10 ares.
If these technologies are applied to half of the total peach-growing area in the province (approximately 5,126 ha), the annual income for local farmers could increase by about KRW 78.4 billion.
To ensure effective implementation, the Agricultural Research and Extension Services has formed a "Smart Agriculture Technology Support Team" in collaboration with the Rural Development Administration, Yeongcheon City, and private companies to provide training and consulting tailored to each farm.
Jo Young-sook, Director of the Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services, stated, “This project will serve as a turning point in boosting the disaster resilience and productivity of peach farms, which are increasingly threatened by abnormal climate conditions,” adding, “We will continue to expand not only greenhouse-based smart farms but also open-field smart farming technologies throughout the province.”
Source: Gyeongsangbuk-do Provincial Government