Grafted cacti are consumables. They can easily survivefor 3-6 months without watering. In addition, they are excellent plants for air purification, making them popular due to their attractive appearance and easy maintenance. South Korea is the world's leadingproducer and exporter of grafted cacti, controlling 70-80% of the export market. Grafted cacti are the topexport item in the South Korean floral export market. Baekya Farm is the largest exporter of grafted cactiin South Korea. They make special efforts to create a healthy growth environment for grafted cacti byblending soil and fertilizer properly and modernizing facilities to ensure a stable supply of products to overseas export markets. They have more than 10 types of products, with 6-7 main products, includingcacti varieties such as Bi-moran, Red, Yellow, Pink, and Black. Currently, they export 100% of their products, ata price of 470 won per 9 cm. Last year, they produced about one million units and exported them all,earning about 470 million won, or 300,000-400,000 dollars depending on the exchange rate. They primarilyexport to the United States, the Netherlands, Australia, Central and South America, and Southeast Asia, withthe United States being the main market. The CEO of Baekya Farm became interested in the cactus business when he visited a friend who was farming. It has been 37 years since he began growing grafted cacti. He settled in Goyang City since he started the grafted cactus business, after living in Seoul for 15years, moving from Jinan-gun (Jeollabuk Province), to the forefront of South Korean agriculture. The firstfarming operation started in an 800 m2 wooden house, just large enough to hold the bamboo sticks on whichthe grafted cacti were hung. After selling in the domestic market for about three years, they began exporting.Now their farm has grown to 10.000 m2, and they employ eight people, including four family members.The first-year revenue was about 5 million won in cash at the time, but it is now worth about 50 million won. Spring is the busiest season for the cultivationof grafted cacti. Last year's harvest needs to be collected, and new seeds need to be sown. The farmreceives new plant varieties developed by National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science and RuralDevelopment Administration. They then propagate and cultivate them on their own farm. The farm alsodistributes the new plants to 13 other farms in Goyang City. Baekya Farm is undoubtedly the largest and mostlong-standing grafted cactus cultivation farm in Korea and is the base for exports. The CEO Baek, who tirelesslyworks to develop products that meet the demands of new consumers, is already preparing several candidateproducts for new market opportunities. These products are expected to be released in 1-2 years. Generally, ittakes a year to graft and sow new productsand another year for them to become marketable.

The SamSung Farm, located in Eumseong, Chungcheongbuk-do, is the largest cultivation farm in Korea for grafted cactus. It draws attention as it continues to export unique yet high-quality grafted cactus to 34 countries around the world, including the United States, and the Netherlands. The exports have been stagnant due to COVID-19 earlier this year, which have recently recovered to 90% of the existing exports. The <Korea Agrafood> visited SamSung Farm, which claims the world's best quality as a farm specialized in exporting grafted cactus. #Boasting the most vivid colors and quality around the globe Founded in 1997, SamSung Farm is an export-specialized farm designed to distribute the entire amount of production to the world. Beginning with the export to the United States and the Netherlands in 1998, and the export volume increased, reaching out to 34 countries. The export amount also exceeded USD 600,000. The products exported by SamSung Farm are the finest in the world. It is popular in the U.S. and Europe, as well as Southeast Asian markets as it has vivid colors and excellent storage properties. Grafted cactus is an ornamental plant, so it is characterized by its bright pigment in yellow, red, and pink. The key is the technology of breeding and cultivating through nutrient solutions specially formulated to maintain intense colors. Previously, exporting countries included the United States, the Netherlands, and Canada, but in recent years, the number of destinations steadily increased to Russia, Latin America, and Europe. CEO Kim Ki-hong of SamSung Farm said, “The grafted cactus can be enjoyed for ornamental use in the age of COVID-19, thus exports are recovering rapidly. Korea’s core cultivation technology is far superior, so it is highly competitive and dominates up to 90% of the global market.” #Thorough management targeting the international market Another competitiveness of SamSung Farm is that it introduces a range of products to consumers every year by releasing new grafted cactus. The Rural Development Administration supplies new colored grafted cactus each year to SamSung Farm. Among them, those with great export potential are selected, retouched into export quality, and presented to the world. Due to its vibrant color and excellent quality, it is always recognized as a premium, top-notch cactus by importers. In terms of cultivation skills, only Korean researchers have the expertise to create desired colors through nutrient solution cultivation. This knowhow is recognized as a patented technology that cannot be trailed even in advanced flower countries like the Netherlands. The market for grafted cactus is fierce in competition for new products among countries to establish a new consumption market every year. Accordingly, in order to maintain continued exports in the international market, the plan is to expand the currently traded 40 types of grafted cactus to 50 types to satisfy the needs of numerous global consumers. CEO Kim said, “By expanding the current export volume to over 800,000 units, Korea will continue to retain over 90% of the world’s consumption market for grafted cactus. To this end, we will immediately grasp the preferences of customers around the world and build a more robust system that reflects desires on new products.” SamSung Farm Tel: +82-10-5182-5183 E-mail: ing1974@hanmail.net