Special legislation aims to resolve gap between farmland law and rural reality shaped by inheritance and aging

Measures to protect actual cultivators and tenant farmers, expand young farmers' access to land

Farmland Act revision and stronger farmland bank also in the works

Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Minister Song Mi-ryeong speaks at a meeting with neighborhood representatives on the nationwide farmland survey, held at Namwon City Hall on Wednesday. [Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Redistribution and DB prohibited]
Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Minister Song Mi-ryeong speaks at a meeting with neighborhood representatives on the nationwide farmland survey, held at Namwon City Hall on Wednesday. [Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Redistribution and DB prohibited]

The government plans to enact special legislation by year-end to address accumulated farmland violations and irregularities uncovered through a nationwide survey. The measure aims to narrow the gap between current farmland regulations and rural realities shaped by inheritance and an aging population, while protecting actual cultivators and tenant farmers and making it easier for young farmers to secure land.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said Minister Song Mi-ryeong attended a forum on the direction of the special farmland legislation held Tuesday at the National Assembly members' office building, where she discussed follow-up measures to the nationwide farmland survey and proposals for regulatory reform with lawmakers, agricultural industry representatives, academics and field experts.

The forum was organized to flesh out the plan to enact special legislation, announced at a ruling party-government consultative meeting on Sept. 21. The central question is how to resolve the long-standing gap between rural realities — driven by inheritance and an aging population — and the current farmland regulatory system.

The event was co-hosted by nine lawmakers, including Yun Jun-byeong, who leads the ruling party's side on the National Assembly's Agriculture, Food, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Committee, along with Kim Seong-beom, Moon Geum-ju, Moon Dae-rim, Song Ok-ju, Lee Gae-ho, Lee Jae-gwan, Lim Mi-ae and Ju Cheol-hyeon.

Chae Gwang-seok, a research fellow at the Korea Rural Economic Institute, proposed that the scope and types of accumulated problems be identified through the nationwide survey before the special law is used to resolve them on a one-time basis. He said the existing farmland system itself must also be revised to reflect rural realities so that the same problems do not recur.

Discussions at the forum highlighted the need to protect farmers who actually cultivate the land and tenant farmers. Participants also discussed strengthening the role of the farmland bank and improving access for young farmers who struggle to find land. Calls were also raised for revising the current Farmland Act to better reflect actual land-use conditions.

The ministry plans to finalize the details of the special legislation based on opinions shared by lawmakers, experts and farming communities at the forum. It will work with the National Assembly to push for enactment by year-end, while pursuing parallel reforms including a revision of the Farmland Act and an expansion of the farmland bank's functions.


adastra@heraldcorp.com