Rise in returnee farmers pushes full-time farming share back above 60%

Share of urban-dwelling agricultural households doubles over 20 years

Nearly 74% of farms sell less than 10 million won in produce annually

More than half of South Korea's farming, forestry and fishing population is now 65 or older, according to a new government survey. The share of full-time farming households has climbed back above 60 percent, partly driven by an increase in people returning to agriculture, while the average area of cultivated land per farming household has fallen to its lowest level in 65 years.

According to the 2025 Census of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries released Tuesday by the Ministry of Statistics, the number of farming, forestry and fishing households nationwide stood at 1.276 million as of Dec. 1 last year, up 210,000 from 2020. The total population of those households rose by 191,000 over the same period to 2.575 million.

Rice seedlings are transplanted in a paddy field during the season's first planting. [Yonhap]
Rice seedlings are transplanted in a paddy field during the season's first planting. [Yonhap]

The census is conducted every five years to assess the state of farming, forestry and fishing households across the country.

The ministry cautioned against interpreting the figures as a genuine increase in the number of such households. "It would be difficult to say households have rebounded," a ministry official said. "The expansion of the survey registry this time around may have captured households that had previously gone undetected."

Aging has deepened considerably. The share of people aged 65 or older among the farming, forestry and fishing population rose to 51.0 percent, up from 41.9 percent in 2020 — 30.3 percentage points above the national elderly population share of 20.7 percent.

In terms of household composition, two-person households remained the most common at 53.8 percent, unchanged from five years earlier. Single-person households rose 7.2 percentage points to 27.2 percent.

Farming, forestry and fishing households are gradually shifting toward urban areas. Last year, 32.3 percent of such households lived in urban districts, with the remaining 67.7 percent in towns and rural areas. The urban share has risen consistently from 17.0 percent in 2005, surpassing 30 percent for the first time in 20 years.

Farming households alone numbered 1.242 million last year. By region, North Gyeongsang Province had the most at 189,000 households, or 15.2 percent of the total, followed by South Jeolla Province with 154,000 (12.4 percent) and Gyeonggi Province with 153,000 (12.3 percent).

Of all farming households, 759,000, or 61.2 percent, were full-time, while 482,000, or 38.8 percent, were part-time. The full-time share rose 1.3 percentage points from 2020.

The average farming career of household heads was 27.1 years, down 3.9 years from five years ago — a change the ministry attributed in part to the growing number of people returning to farming.

The average area of cultivated land per farming household fell to 0.87 hectares from 1.08 hectares in 2020, a drop of 0.2 hectares. That is the lowest level since 1960, when the figure stood at 0.82 hectares.

Farming households with annual sales of agricultural and livestock products below 10 million won ($7,350) accounted for 73.9 percent of the total. Those with sales of 30 million won or more made up 12.4 percent.

"Those who return to farming tend to devote themselves fully to agriculture in the early stages, which likely explains the rise in full-time farming households," the ministry said. "The decline in cultivated land area can be seen as a consequence of aging."

The most common farming type was paddy rice cultivation, accounting for 36.3 percent of all farming households, down 3.3 percentage points from 39.6 percent in 2020. The shift reflects policy efforts to encourage farmers to switch to other crops. Smart farming households numbered 46,400, or 3.7 percent of all farming households.

Fishing households totaled 47,000, up 4,000 from 2020, accounting for 0.2 percent of all households. Full-time fishing households made up 41.3 percent and part-time households 58.7 percent. By region, South Jeolla Province had the most at 15,400 households (32.5 percent), followed by South Chungcheong Province with 8,500 (18.0 percent) and South Gyeongsang Province with 8,000 (16.9 percent).

Fishing households that owned fishing vessels numbered 24,600, or 51.8 percent of all fishing households. Those with annual seafood sales below 10 million won accounted for 54.6 percent, while those with sales of 30 million won or more made up 27.7 percent.

Forestry households numbered 130,000, representing 0.6 percent of all households. By region, North Gyeongsang Province had the most at 21,900 households (16.9 percent), followed by South Gyeongsang Province with 21,100. Full-time forestry households accounted for just 20.6 percent, while part-time households made up 79.4 percent, with most also engaged in farming or other activities.


y2k@heraldcorp.com