Seoul, South Korea – The South Korean Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has announced a significant expansion of its Eco-friendly Fisheries Product Production Direct Payment System for 2025. The budget for this program, which provides financial incentives to aquaculture farms adopting environmentally sustainable practices, has been increased by KRW 6.5 billion to a total of KRW 410 billion.

The system, which is divided into a compound feed direct payment system and a certification direct payment system, is designed to encourage and support the production of eco-friendly fishery products. The compound feed system provides direct subsidies to farms for purchasing compound feed, while the certification system offers financial assistance to farms that have obtained eco-friendly certifications and comply with Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) standards.

Key Changes for 2025

Several key changes have been made to the system in 2025 to reduce the operational burden on aquaculture farms and accelerate the transition to sustainable aquaculture.

Expanded Support for Fish Species: The compound feed system will now cover approximately 15 or more full-cycle marine aquaculture species, including yellowtail and grouper, significantly expanding the range of supported fish beyond the previous four species (flounder, sea bream, Japanese rockfish, and flatfish).
Flexible Feed Requirements: The requirement for farms to use 100% compound feed has been relaxed. Recognizing that some species, such as flounder, may require live feed during certain stages of their life cycle, the system will now allow for a combination of live and compound feed.
Performance-Based Payments: The certification direct payment system will shift from a payment based on the certified area of the aquaculture farm to a system based on the sales of certified fishery products.

Application Period

Aquaculture farms can apply for the program starting from January 6th of the following year through their local government offices. The deadline for compound feed direct payment applications is January 31st, and for certification direct payment applications, it is February 28th.