작물육종의 부가가치 향상을 위한 종자가공처리 활성화 방안

Measures to Revitalize Seed Processing to Improve Added Value in Crop Breeding

The global seed distribution market is rapidly transforming into a high-value-added seed market, with the production and distribution of processed seeds expanding, led by multinational seed companies. However, domestic seed companies still lack investment in seed processing, and the level of technology for processing distributed seeds is relatively low. The proportion of seeds processed and produced by seed companies must be increased to transform the domestic seed industry into an internationally competitive export industry. According to the results of a survey of 2,679 domestic companies by the National Seed and Variety Service (2021), the main business field of seed companies is seed production (1,192 companies), followed by seed sales (1,041 companies), nurseries (328 companies), and seed processing (35 companies). In conclusion, few companies conduct business in the field of seed processing. Accordingly, the government plans to build seed-processing facilities for joint utilization by seed companies to expand the supply of high-quality seeds from domestic seed companies. To this end, we investigated the seed- processing status of major seed companies and conducted a demand survey for facilities and equipment in the seed-processing field. Details and operational plans for the establishment of a tentatively named ‘Seed Enterprise Joint Utilization Seed Processing Center,’ based on domestic companies' processing status and demands, are presented in this paper.