Yanggu strawberries begin full-scale shipment... 135 tons of production and 1.4 billion won in income expected.

(Yanggu=Yonhap News) Reporter Yang Ji-woong = On the 16th, Gangwon Yanggu County announced that it will begin the full shipment of strawberries, a new income crop that it is cultivating. Yanggu County expects that the strawberries, which grow in clean air and clear water and boast firm flesh and fresh juice, will capture the taste of consumers this year as well. This year, it is expected to ship approximately 135 tons from an area of 2.2 hectares. The expected income is over 1.4 billion won. This is a figure that greatly exceeds last year's shipment volume of 25 tons and income of 260 million won. The county expects that the increase in productivity due to the advancement of cultivation technology and the completion of rental-type smart farms will provide a stable production base for high-quality Yanggu strawberries and further strengthen market competitiveness. The produced strawberries will be shipped through various routes such as Yanggu Premium Hall, Garakdong Agricultural Products Market, Nonghyup Hanaro Mart, direct sales, and online sales, and some farms will also plan to hold strawberry harvesting experiences. The county has invested 20 billion won in total project costs to create a regional specialized rental-type smart farm to produce high-quality strawberries. In addition, to reduce the burden of winter heating costs in the northern Gangwon region, the county has invested 4 billion won to promote a low-carbon energy co-use facility support project using geothermal energy, which is expected to help reduce farm management costs. Furthermore, the county is promoting seedling supply, installation of high-altitude cultivation facilities, support for strawberry packaging materials, and modernization of facility horticulture projects, and is also conducting agricultural education on soil management, eco-friendly agriculture, and pest and disease control to strengthen farm capacity and stable production. Kim Sang-hoon, director of the Yanggu Agricultural Technology Center, said, "Yanggu strawberries are increasing their quality competitiveness based on a clean cultivation environment and systematic technical support," and "Going forward, we will strengthen the stable production and distribution base to cultivate it as a representative strawberry production area in winter and provide practical support to increase farm income."