S. Korea set to help farmers cope with EU FTA

SEOUL, April 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korea plans to inject more money to help local farmers cope with the possible fallout from a free trade pact with the European Union (EU), the government said Thursday.
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said it will set aside an extra 2 trillion won (US$1.8 billion) in the next 10 years aimed at helping farmers deal with the influx of meat and dairy products from Europe.
The plan comes as Seoul is calling on lawmakers to swiftly ratify the free trade agreement (FTA) signed in October, which calls for lowering tariffs across the board and opening the local market to EU farms' products.
The EU parliament has already approved the landmark deal that could boost two-way trade by 20 percent in the long term. The FTA could go into effect as early as July 1 if South Korea's parliament ratifies the pact.
The extra money will augment the 8.9 trillion won in funds already set aside by Seoul to help farmers.
Of the extra money, the ministry said 780 billion won will be spent on revamping the local distribution sector, with 630 billion won used to help improve productivity of locally raised livestock.
Other areas to receive money include support to improve market sanitation and measures to assist farmers in overcoming short-term liquidity problems.
Government policymakers and private sector experts have said extensive support is needed because the FTA could cause South Korea's farm production to decline by an average of 187 billion won every year in the next decade, with local pig and dairy producers expected to be hit hardest.
yonngong@yna.co.kr