Incheon: Agriculture ministers from South Korea, China, and Japan convened in Incheon for a significant meeting aimed at addressing key issues like food security, animal disease response, sustainable farming, and more, marking the first trilateral talks in seven years. This meeting, as reported by Seoul’s agriculture ministry, signals a renewed commitment to collaboration after a long pause partly attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean Agriculture Minister Song Mi-ryung engaged with her counterparts, China’s Han Jun and Japan’s Shinjiro Koizumi, to restart the trilateral discussions. These meetings were previously suspended for seven years. The ministers focused on six central agricultural topics, including food security, animal disease response, sustainable farming practices, rural area revitalization, cooperation on the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS), and broader international cooperation.
The gathering followed the 2025 APEC Food Security Ministerial Meeting that took place over the weekend, also in Incheon. During the trilateral talks, the ministers highlighted the necessity of intelligence sharing and cooperation to tackle global agricultural challenges such as climate change, infectious animal diseases, and supply chain disruptions.
Furthermore, the countries committed to collaborating on smart farming technology development, supporting carbon-neutral agriculture, and encouraging young farmers. They concluded the meeting with a joint statement emphasizing efforts to promote sustainable agricultural growth and enhance food security, agreeing to conduct regular future meetings.
Minister Song noted the significance of this meeting amidst rapidly changing agricultural conditions due to climate and supply chain issues, expressing hope that these discussions would lead to increased practical cooperation. Song also held a bilateral meeting with Shinjiro Koizumi to explore avenues for boosting South Korea’s food and agricultural exports to Japan and enhancing bilateral cooperation on animal disease response, marking another first in seven years.
During the bilateral dialogue, Song underscored that collaboration between South Korea and Japan could significantly improve the competitiveness and sustainability of their agricultural industries, given their shared systems and challenges.