Gyeongbuk Province to expand food industry with hub institutions for food convergence clusters in four regions

【Financial News, Andong = Reporter Kim Jang-wook】 Gyeongbuk Province is setting out to expand the food industry in partnership with hub institutions for food convergence clusters in four regions of the province.
Gyeongbuk Province will sign an MOU on the 3rd at the Stanford Hotel in Andong with six institutions, including Andong City, the Gyeongbuk Bio Industry Research Institute (northern region), the Gyeongbuk Branch of the Korea Food Research Institute (western region), Daegu University (southern region), and the East Sea Rim Industry Research Institute (eastern region).
With a project budget of 5.6 billion won, the province will build a shared food factory in Andong and support local food companies with initial production and product commercialization.
Food Korean Wave Industry Bureau Director Koo Kwang-mo said, “This agreement will be a meaningful opportunity to bring together the food industry’s capabilities in each region and strengthen the foundations for growth of the local food industry,” and emphasized, “We will ensure the food convergence clusters and shared factory are established without a hitch, and do all we can to help food companies boost their competitiveness through industry-academia-research-government cooperation.”
The participating institutions agreed to cooperate on joint research and technology development in the food industry, provide the technical and infrastructure support needed to establish the clusters, jointly pursue projects to strengthen companies’ competitiveness, and make shared use of their existing networks. The province will establish a framework for cooperation linking regional food industry resources and infrastructure.
In particular, the shared factory will be built from 2027 through 2028 with an area of 1,885 square meters at the Gyeongbuk Bio Industry Research Institute in Pungsan-eup, Andong. Food companies will be able to share production facilities, reduce the burden of facility investment, and receive support from new product development through production and commercialization.
The shared factory will specialize in liquid foods, including juice-based carbonated beverages, extracts and concentrates. It will support the small-batch production needed after prototype development and before products go on sale, helping companies prepare for market launch.
Meanwhile, last April, the province was selected by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) as an operator for its “Food Convergence Cluster Development” pilot project. It plans to advance cluster development by linking the Korea Food Industry Cluster Promotion Agency’s specialized technical expertise and business-support infrastructure.

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