With the outbreak of COVID-19 since the beginning of last year, the export environment of Korean agricultural and fishery products is expected to have continued changes this year. In response, Oh Hyoung-wan, the Executive Vice President of the Food Industry & Trade Division, Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), said “What is most important is to stay prepared preemptively by combining the advantages of online and offline promotion, so that the export trend of Korean agricultural and fishery products remain unchanged even when the export environment for agricultural and fishery products changes.” We learned about aT’s plans to revitalize the exports of Korean agricultural and fishery products this year as well as the direction of online business that has emerged as a new trend.

Q, Please explain what aT’s plans are to revitalize the export of agricultural and fishery products this year.

: We set an aggressive target of USD 10.6 billion for this year’s agricultural and fishery export target, an increase of 7.4% from the previous year. To achieve this export goal, we plan to provide all-round, comprehensive support. First, we have determined that it is important to consolidate the operation of export specialized organizations including 6 integrated export organizations, such as paprika and pears, and 11 leading fisheries organizations, such as laver and flatfish. Through this, we aim to focus on discovering and fostering new functional items and reinforce the basis for revitalizing the export of rural area income-related items. In addition, We will expand the digital market for promising export products by establishing 5 additional Korean food centers in online malls such as the New Southern region.

Q. With COVID-19, changes seem inevitable in how Korean agricultural products are exported. What is the direction of aT’s non-face-to-face online business this year?

: Due to COVID-19 last year, there were new attempts to reform the online and mobile-oriented export support system away from offline or face-to-face marketing, such as the online export consultation meetings and the opening of T-mall Korean Food Center. Based on these attempts, we plan to build a B2B platform exclusively for agricultural products or expand the online permanent Korean food center this year. For example, we are in the process of renovating our AgroTrade into an online B2B transaction brokerage site, through which we expect to reduce the cost of search for Korean agricultural products by overseas buyers and increase reliability by providing online support for product inquiries, sample requests, and quotation consultations. For online permanent Korean Food Center, we will have experts provide close support to korean export firms in the entire process from online shopping mall selection to store entrance. Through this, we expect to see korean small and medium-sized exporters enter the online distribution network more actively.

Q. Last year, exports of Korean agricultural products increased while exports of seafood decreased. What are your plans to revitalize seafood export?

: Seafood exports amounted to USD 2.3 billion last year, a decrease of 7.4% from the same period in the previous year. This year, aT will create an organization to lead each item in the fishery sector while strengthening the competitiveness in the entire process from the production stage to export for strategic export items, such as laver, abalone, flatfish, and fish cake, by systemizing the organization. We also plan to promote export voucher business in stages according to the capabilities of domestic exporters and solidify the development of high value-added fishery processed products, thereby fostering export products with potential to succeed.”