Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs: "Lotte, an excellent company for agricultural-rural symbiosis... contributing 11.2 billion won to the cooperation fund"

(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Yoon-gu = The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs introduced Lotte Group on the 13th as a representative example of outstanding contributing companies to the Rural-Urban Mutual Cooperation Fund.

The Rural-Urban Mutual Cooperation Fund was established in 2015 when the South Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was ratified, to systematically support the sustainable development of rural and fishing communities and mutual cooperation between private companies and farmers and rural residents. Since 2017, it has been created through the voluntary participation of the private sector.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Lotte Group has had 13 affiliates participating in the fund contributions since 2018 and is a leading company contributing to the Rural-Urban Mutual Cooperation Fund, taking the lead in disaster recovery and regional economic revitalization in rural areas.

The total amount of funds contributed by Lotte Group so far is 11.2 billion won.

Since starting fund contributions in 2018, Lotte Group has carried out various support projects such as fertilizer support for Jeju farmers, promotion of local rice consumption, and prevention of marine accidents.

Since 2022, it has been providing relief supplies for disaster victims and families in crisis in rural areas. Lotte Group has delivered 200 million won worth of relief supplies to victims of forest fires in Gyeongbuk and Gangwon provinces, and to victims of heavy rains and typhoons, as well as to families in crisis.

In particular, it has provided agricultural love vouchers worth about 1 billion won to families in crisis in rural areas declared as special disaster areas.

In 2023, Lotte Group also provided relief kits to families in crisis in rural areas.

Since September of last year until this month, Lotte Group has been contributing to the revitalization of the rural economy through a local food repackaging project with Inje County in Gangwon Province.

Park Sung-woo, Director of the Rural Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, said, "Lotte Group's use of the Rural-Urban Mutual Cooperation Fund is an exemplary practice of ESG (environmental, social responsibility, and corporate governance) that goes beyond simple support and achieves mutual benefit with the local community," and expressed hope that sustainable development in rural areas would spread through the participation of private companies.

ykim@yna.co.kr