The Rural Development Administration’s Agricultural Satellite Center and the Korea Rural Economic Institute’s Agricultural Observation Center signed a ‘MOU for the Advancement of Agricultural Observation Using Agricultural Satellite Information’ on December 15. This agreement follows a 2011 MOU and aims to systematically utilize the satellite imagery from the Agricultural Satellite, scheduled to launch in 2026, for agricultural observation and diversify the information collection system to enhance food security.
Through this agreement, the two institutions will cooperate in establishing a system for collecting major agricultural product information using the Agricultural Satellite, jointly analyzing and utilizing agricultural data, and co-hosting academic events and personnel exchanges. The Agricultural Satellite Center will provide analysis results of cultivation and shipment areas using satellite images, while the Agricultural Observation Center will provide data collected through aerial photography and field surveys.
Hong Seok-young, head of the Agricultural Satellite Center, stated that this agreement is an important step towards systematically introducing satellite information into the entire agricultural observation process. He expressed hope that the two institutions will closely cooperate to refine the satellite information analysis system and policy utilization model, and become key institutions leading the scientific and advanced national agricultural observation.
Due to recent climate change, the variability in crop yields and supply uncertainty have increased, necessitating a scientific observation system to quickly and objectively secure production and supply information for major agricultural products. The government has designated ‘enhancing supply prediction using the Agricultural Satellite’ as a national task to strengthen food security.