SMART FARMING EXPERIMENT

[Anchor Lead]

A smart farming experiment is underway in Miryang, Gyeongsangnam-do Province. Young farmers are using advanced information technologies and data to revive the agricultural sector, which has been struggling due to the aged workforce.

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Tomatoes ripen by absorbing ample nutrients from liquid fertilizer. Temperature and light in the glass greenhouse are adjusted to the optimal levels. Strawberry harvesting, a labor-intensive task, is performed by a robot, which only picks berries that are ripe. This is the future of agriculture. This smart farming project brought together 52 young farmers from across the nation. Thirty-two-year-old Kim Tae-wook, who studied in the U.S. and is currently pursuing a doctorate degree, believes the future is in agriculture.

[Soundbite] KIM TAE-WOOK(FARMER) : "I am going to conduct research into boosting the efficiency of smart farming through data analysis."

This young man, who just graduated high school decided to build a career in farming instead of finding a corporate job.

[Soundbite] LEE JI-WON(FARMER) : "My primary goal is to get a job at the Smart Farm Innovation Valley or any other farm."

The young farmers will learn smart farming techniques for one year. The central and local governments plan to invest 90 billion won in building a smart farm measuring 48ha.

[Soundbite] KIM KYOUNG-SOO(GOVERNOR OF GYEONGSANGNAM-DO PROV.) : "The goal is to revive rural areas by helping young farmers settle down successfully, using smart farming technologies."

The young farmers will create their own community to try innovative farming techniques and sell their produce. The results of this smart farming experiment carried out in Miryang will become clear in two years.