Foreword

Innovation, Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability in Korea is a part of the OECD Food and Agricultural Reviews series. The review was implemented as a co-operative activity with the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI) under the leadership of Chang-Gil Kim. It examines the conditions in which farms and businesses in Korea undertake innovation in the food and agriculture sector to become more productive and environmentally sustainable. It starts with an overview of the food and agriculture sector and outlines development challenges and opportunities (Chapter 2). A wide range of policies which influence incentives for innovation are then examined: a favourable and predictable environment for investment (Chapter 3); capacities and public services enabling business development (Chapter 4); agricultural policy (Chapter 5) and the operation of the agricultural innovation system (Chapter 6).

Policies in Korea are analysed following a framework developed by the OECD as part of its work on agricultural innovation and in response to a request from the G20 in 2012 under the Presidency of Mexico to evaluate the extent to which a wide range of policies facilitates productivity growth and sustainability in food and agriculture. The framework has been applied to Australia, Brazil, Canada, the People’s Republic of China (hereafter “China”), Estonia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Turkey, and the United States, and additional reviews are underway or planned.