■ The small yet strong Netherlands

○ The Netherlands, despite its small size and population, has embraced challenge and technological innovation to thrive in harsh natural environments, enhancing its competitiveness and establishing itself as the second largest global exporter of agrifoods. 

○ The Netherlands has become a global leader in agriculture through action-oriented initiatives: 1) establishing a golden triangle for collaboration and knowledge exchange between the government, private sector, and research institutions, 2) implementing legal frameworks that facilitate the transition to sustainable circular agriculture, and 3) developing innovative future farms using digital technology.

■ Strategies for advancing the agrifood industry through high-tech agriculture 

○ (Cases) Representative cases include 1) the World Horti Center that creates enormous dynamics in which research, education, business community, and public institutions collaborate for sustainable innovation and business opportunities and 2) Wageningen University & Research that plays a pivotal role in building agricultural and forest clusters and creating food valleys. Additionally, the nation boasts high-tech agriculture, such as SWEEPER, a harvesting robot, Priva’s crop monitoring robot, and Zalando’s automated logistics systems. 

○ (Strategies applicable to Jeonbuk) We propose the following strategic roadmaps to advance Jeonbuk’s agrifood sector through high-tech agriculture.

a​Upgrading the food industry with a focus on food tech and governance

a​ Constructing robot-friendly demonstration centers for controlled environment​  agriculture while proactively pursuing relevant international joint research projects

​❚ Integrated education and research systems for the agricultural and life science industries

○ (Cases) Representative cases include 1) AERES, an agriculture-specialized educational institution that operates a practical curriculum for horticulture, sustainable agriculture, and smart farming through a step-by-step synergistic​ approach encompassing both secondary and adult education and 2) GroenPact, a​ public–private collaborative partnership platform that aims to achieve agricultural and environmental sustainability.

​○ (Strategies applicable to Jeonbuk) We propose developing high school–university-linked programs for the agriculture and life science sectors and creating the​ Jeonbuk Agriculture Center to enhance integrated education and research, advancing the region’s agricultural and life science industries.

​❚ A financial support model tailored to agriculture and life science

○ (Cases) A representative case is Rabobank, which began as a small farmer credit union in the 19th century and has developed into one of the world’s top 30 banks. It​ provides farmers with financial assistance of more than 70% of greenhouse​ investment funds required to construct a glass greenhouse.

​○ (Strategies applicable to Jeonbuk) Given Jeonbuk’s urgent need to develop a financial support model for agriculture and life science, we propose REITs​ targeting agriculture and logistics.

​❚ A sustainable ecological/environmental platform​

​○ (Cases) Representative cases include 1) satellite data-driven water quality monitoring services (since 2005) developed by Water Insight, a small and medium-​ sized Dutch enterprise, and 2) the WaterCampus innovation chain, which promotes​ collaboration between water technology companies, knowledge institutions, and​ the government and paves the path from research to business

​○ (Strategies applicable to Jeonbuk) Jeonbuk State is advised to build a sustainable​ ecological/environmental platform, for which it must develop a Saemangeum​ water industry platform modeled after the Netherlands’ WaterCampus and​ construct a satellite-based environmental monitoring system.

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