As anxiety grows among farmers that the nationwide comprehensive survey of farmland—the first in 78 years—might be a move to force them to sell their land at cheap prices to the government, Cheong Wa Dae (the presidential office) has stepped up to directly address the rumors.

Lee Young-su, presidential secretary for agriculture, food and rural affairs, appeared on the YouTube broadcast "Fact Bangatgan" today (the 22nd) and dismissed the rumor of forced sales, stating, "If you do not want to sell, you do not have to."

The government has been conducting a comprehensive survey targeting all farmland across the country since May.

The target includes approximately 1.36 million hectares of farmland acquired since the implementation of the Farmland Act in 1996.

As a result of the basic survey conducted until the end of July, about 27 percent out of roughly 10.13 million parcels were classified as having potential violations of the Farmland Act.

However, this does not mean that all 27 percent are illegal farmland or subject to disposal.

In-depth investigations are currently underway to verify actual violations through on-site inspections and other methods.

Cheong Wa Dae explained that the purpose of this survey is not to dispose of farmland belonging to general farmers, but to filter out speculative farmland.

It noted that major targets for disposal include farmland acquired in land transaction permission zones, co-acquired farmland through auctions, and farmland acquired through fraudulent agricultural corporations that has been illegally leased or left fallow.

It clarified that cases where farming was halted due to old age or health issues, or inherited farmland, are different.

The office explained that private-to-private leases are permitted for individuals aged 60 or older who have farmed directly for five years or more, and inherited farmland of less than 1 hectare can also be entrusted.

It also stated that claims about disposal notices already being sent out as a result of the comprehensive survey are untrue.

Secretary Lee stated, "Not a single disposal notice has been issued due to the 2026 farmland comprehensive survey."

Regarding claims that the government intends to buy farmland at low prices, the office explained its policy to acquire general farmland at market value and speculative farmland at the publicly announced official land price.

In addition, addressing claims that farmland prices have dropped because of the comprehensive survey, it stated that farmland transaction volume increased by 2.2 percent and prices fell by 4.4 percent this year, noting that this decline is actually smaller compared to the average annual drop of 9 percent following the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) speculation scandal in 2021.

While apologizing for causing anxiety among farmers, Cheong Wa Dae emphasized that the purpose of the comprehensive survey is to weed out speculative farmland and improve the farmland system to reflect reality.

(Reported by Kim Minjeong | Video by Lee Yu-jin | Graphics by Lee Su-min | Produced by SBS Digital News)