Tridge summary
The Democratic Party of Korea plans to continue communication with farmer organizations even after the passage of the amendment to the Grain Management Act. It is said that it will continue to catch 'Nongshim (農心)' ahead of the general election next year by setting up an angle with the Yoon Seok-yeol government. Democratic Party lawmaker So Byeong-hoon, chairman of the National Assembly’s Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Food, Marine and Fisheries Committee, said in a phone call with the Dong-A Ilbo after the amendment was passed at the plenary session on the 23rd, “I trusted the government’s promise to voluntarily quarantine the market, but last year rice prices plummeted by 25%.” “The government will not make efforts to stabilize rice prices unless a clause requiring the purchase of rice is included,” he said. The Democratic Party said, “In September of last year, the price of rice plummeted by 24.9% compared to the same period last year.” Some farmers also expressed their welcome. Lee Young-il, executive chairman of the Jeonbuk Farmers' Association, said, "We welcome the belated revision of the law, which has been requested since the second half of last year." On the other hand, some farmers' organizations have put forward the position that the revision bill needs to be re-discussed at the National Assembly plenary session. The Korea Successor Agricultural Entrepreneurs Federation and the Korea Rice Full-time Farmers Federation said in a statement that day, “Rice has a high mechanization rate and is relatively easy to grow. It will be,” he argued, “the government must exercise its right to demand reconsideration.” Mr. Kim, who is a rice farmer in Uiseong, North Gyeongsang Province, also worried that “if the government buys an excess of rice, everyone will try to grow rice, which will lead to a long-term drop in rice prices.” The National Council of Livestock Related Organizations also said, “We are desperate to expand the budget for the livestock sector due to soaring feed prices and zero tariffs on imported livestock products.