11 FiBL -News EU Project on food security begins in North Korea

FiBL -News
EU Project on food security begins in North Korea

A FiBL-led EU project on food security in North Korea recently begins.

The project team at the kick-off meeting at the end of April 2011 in North Korea.

The project team at the kick-off meeting at the end of April 2011 in North Korea.





FiBL-employee Martin Lichtenhahn discusses the soil properties of the experimental farm with a Korean colleague.


(June 16, 2011)

The project’s goal is to improve food security for the people in North Korea. Within this goal, FiBL is also supporting the development of an organic agriculture competence center. Central to the project is a 30 hectare state-run experimental farm managed by the Academy for Agricultural Sciences (AAS). In addition to the exemplary conversion to organic farming, practical experiments will also be carried out on the experimental farm. Furthermore, an AAS team will also be trained to become experts in organic farming.

The project is funded by EuropeAid, the Directorate-General of Development and Cooperation of the European Commission. The project will run until July 2014.
Agricultural production in North Korea

In North Korea, agricultural production is concentrated mostly on the west coast, which—in comparison with mountainous regions—has somewhat longer vegetation times, flatter areas and more fertile soils. The main crops are rice, corn and potatoes. In addition, wheat, barley, soy beans and vegetables are grown. Agricultural production in North Korea is made difficult by the short vegetation times, the hot and humid summer months and the long, cold winters.
Further information
Contact
Lukas Baumgart, FiBL Germany
Links
fibl.org: Project leaflet - The Establishment of a Competence Centre for Organic and Sustainable Agriculture in the DPR of Korea (519.9 KB)

Aims of the project 

The primary objective of the project is to contribute to food security in DPR Korea by applying enhanced organic techniques to achieve a sustainable agricultural production. Within this project partnership, the following results shall be acomplished: > Achievement of theoretical and practical knowledge in OA; one farm unit converted to OA, serves as a model farm. > Development and implementation of an on-farm research concept; initial scientific results on the application of OA techniques in DPR Korea are demonstrated. > Establishment of a competence centre to disseminate OA technology know-how. > Expertise and training on OA gained through a Korean expert team familiar with OA techniques and qualified to run an organic agricultural competence centre.

Korean Competence Centre for Organic Agriculture (KCCOA) 

Central to this project is the establishment of a Korean Competence Centre for Organic Agriculture (KCCOA). 

FiBL is supporting the local partner - the Academy of Agricultural Sciences - Organic Agriculture Research Institute (AAS - OARI) - in building the centre on a farm for: > research and training purposes > practical application and demonstration of OA techniques > introduction and dissemination of OA techniques in DPR Korea

 The model farm and the research activities provide the basis for achieving practical experience with organic production and for developing locally adapted farming techniques, crops and livestock systems while considering the specific conditions in DPR Korea (e.g. climate, soils, crops and socio-economic conditions). Location The KCCOA is implemented on a 30 hectare state-run experimental farm (Mirim farm) managed by AAS - OARI. The selected farm is about 5 km from Pyongyang’s city centre and 8 km from the research complex of AAS - OARI.

Organic agriculture in DPR Korea 

Organic agriculture (OA) offers a unique combination of low external input technology, environmental conservation and input/output efficiency. Under conditions where access to plant protection products and fertilizers is limited, OA has proven to increase agricultural productivity compared to traditional agriculturale systems as long as the introduction of these techniques coincide with training and capacity building. The national strategy of DPR Korea promotes low input and organic agriculture. Therefore, professionals in the agricultural sector in DPR Korea are determined to strengthen their knowledge, technique and experience in the field of OA. That said, several constraints are seen when introducing OA on a larger scale, as a comprehensive farming system going beyond individual farming techniques. Within the framework of this project, first steps are taken to overcome these obstacles and to introduce OA in DPR Korea.

Capacity building 

The project is helping to build capacity of Korean technical staff and institutions to enable them to initiate contact with non-Korean institutions. This will strengthen their expertise to alleviate the problems of food security using their own national means. Furthermore it empowers the Korean project partners to discuss and define which food security actions would be the most appropriate in the DPR Korea context and how they can best approach them. Activity areas The covered sectors in the project activities are: organic arable crops and vegetable production, organic fertilisers, natural resource management, livestock husbandry as well as managerial issues and organic production standards (at the model farm).

Contact and further information Funding 

This project is funded by The European Union Dates of project April 2011 to July 2014 Project partner Academy of Agricultural Sciences - Organic Agriculture Research Institute (AAS – OARI), Pyongyang, DPR Korea Project team > Lukas Baumgart > Martin Lichtenhahn > Dr. Klaus-Peter Wilbois > Eric Meili > Beate Huber Contact Lukas Baumgart Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) Kasseler Straße 1a D-60486 Frankfurt Phone +49 69 7137699-88 Fax +49 69 7137699-9 E-Mail lukas.baumgart@fibl.org Website www.fibl.org Disclaimer This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of FiBL and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.