The Results of the Survey on the Status of the Insect Industry of 2021 were Announced
Public Relations Division
2022.07.14
262
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (Minister Chung Hwang-keun, MAFRA) announced the results of the Survey on the Status of the Insect Industry of 2021, conducted in accordance with the Article 6 (Fact-Finding Investigations, etc.) of the Insect Industry Promotion and Support Act. The 2021 Survey was conducted from March to May 2022 on farms and businesses of breeding, processing and distributing which were reported to the local governments. The results of the survey will be used in devising policies to nurture the insect industry and in stimulating distribution and promotion∙marketing activities.
The main findings of the Survey on the Status of the Insect Industry of 2021 are the following.
① The size of the domestic insect industry recorded 44.6 billion won, increased by 3.2 billion won year-on-year (up by 7.7% compared to 41.4 billion won in 2020). Edible insects accounted for 23.1 billion won (51.8%); insects for feed, 10.9 billion won (24.4%); educational∙pet insects, 4.2 billion won (9.4%); and others, 6.4 billion won (14.3%). The value of insects for feed and edible insects increased by 17.2% and 9% year-on-year, respectively. In particular, the size of the industry for “Dong-ae-deung-e,” which is a type of insect for feed, continuously increased over the past five years (800 million won in 2017 → 2.2 billion won in 2018 → 6.0 billion won in 2019 → 9.3 billion won in 2020 → 10.9 billion won in 20201). *Sales of insects (A total of 46.6 billion won): 16.6 for “Huin-jeom-bak-i Ggot-mu-ji” followed by 10.9 for “Dong-ae-deung-e,” 3.9 for darkling beetles, 2.8 for rhinoceros beetles, 2.6 for crickets, 1.4 for stag beetles, and 6.4 for others including silkworms.”
② The number of reported insect-related businesses (production, production, distribution) recorded 3,012 (up by 4.8% compared to 2,873 businesses in 2020), up by 139 places year-on-year.
As per region, 744 businesses were located in Gyeonggi-do, followed by 536 in Gyeongsangbuk-do, 422 in Chungcheongnam-do and 342 in Jeollabuk-do. By the type of insects, 1,210 businesses were related to “Huin-jeom-bak-i Ggot-mu-ji,” followed by 411 for rhinoceros beetles, 271 for darkling beetles, 252 for crickets, 224 for “Dong-ae-deung-e,” 130 for stag beetles and 29 for butterflies. The number of farms of “Dong-ae-deung-e,” which is an insect for feed, increased by 34.9% (166 in 2020) year-on-year.
③ By the type of business entity, 1,820 were farms (60.5%), 874 were businesses (29.1%), and 314 (10.4%) were corporations (agricultural corporations∙agricultural cooperative corporation). As for the type of business, 1,470 (48.9%) places were running sideline businesses (with less than 50% of the total revenue coming from insects), 958 were main businesses (31.8%), and 580 (19.3%) were in between (with 80~50% of the total revenue coming from insects)
④ The survey on the infrastructure of the insect industry of the local governments shows that 208 places are selling insect related products; 14 are insect ecology parks; 96 are educational and hands-on experience centers; and 17 are insect-related laboratories. Last year, 17 insect-related festivals were held, inviting 1.21 million tourists in a year, even though some festivals were held virtually or canceled due to COVID-19.
Director An Hyeong-geun of the Seed & Bio Industry Division of MAFRA said, “Insects are promising biological resources which can be used in various areas including food, feed, education∙pet, cosmetics, new materials, etc. The size of the related industries is continuously increasing. In order to nurture the insect industry as the next-generation bio industry, we plan to support the establishment and systematization of base complexes and distribution project teams while actively promoting relevant institutional∙regulatory improvement.”