▲ Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) has announced a goal to expand the green bio industry to 10 trillion won by 2031 and foster 300 leading companies with annual sales of 10 billion won or more.
To achieve this, the ministry plans to establish specialized regional clusters, expand support for promising venture and small-to-medium enterprises, and refine the institutional framework to support industrial development.
MAFRA announced the 1st Basic Plan for Fostering the Green Bio Industry (2027–2031), which contains these core objectives, at CJ Blossom Park in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, today (July 20).
Green bio is an industry that applies advanced biotechnology to the agriculture and food sectors to develop and produce high-function, high-value-added products such as functional foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals.
According to MAFRA, the domestic green bio industry reached a scale of 6 trillion won in 2024, and there are currently 76 companies with annual sales of 10 billion won or more as of this year.
The first long-term legal plan includes support measures centered on six major fields: seeds, microorganisms, insects, natural products, food materials, and animal pharmaceuticals.
First, MAFRA plans to upgrade clusters in each field, centered on seven green bio industry promotion districts across the country, including Gangwon, Gyeonggi, South Chungcheong, North Jeolla, South Jeolla, North Gyeongsang, and South Gyeongsang provinces. It will also expand research and development infrastructure, such as venture campuses and industrialization facilities.
The ministry also plans to expand contract farming between companies and farmers to provide companies with a stable supply chain of raw materials while creating new sources of income for farmers.
To support the growth of promising companies, the scale of the green bio fund will be increased from 142.9 billion won this year to 242.9 billion won by 2031, and loan and guarantee support linked to policy financing will be strengthened.
The ministry will also expand export support for green bio companies, including assistance for product commercialization, obtaining overseas certifications, participating in global exhibitions, and buyer consultation meetings.
MAFRA will also build a Green Bio Artificial Intelligence Transformation (AX) platform to manage data on agricultural biological resources, genomes, and functionality in an integrated manner.
Through this, the ministry plans to shorten research and development periods and increase the success rate of discovering useful materials.
The number of green bio contract departments at universities is expected to increase from the current scale of 1 university and 20 students to 5 universities and 100 students by 2031 to cultivate master's and doctoral-level professional talent.
In addition, the ministry plans to operate Green Bio Talk, an online window for receiving company difficulties at any time, and utilize regulation-free zones and regulatory sandboxes to support the market entry of new technologies and products.
Kim Jong-gu, Vice Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, said, "The green bio industry is the future that will lead the high-value-added transformation of our agriculture and a new growth engine that will drive South Korea's bio-economy." He added, "We will create a foundation for promising venture companies to grow into global leaders and build a win-win model where farmers and companies grow together."
(Photo: Provided by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Yonhap News)
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