24 overseas buyers from 13 countries and 55 domestic firms held more than 330 consultations, resulting in $1.35 million in export MOUs.
A Philippine agricultural mechanization official was invited to share practical guidance on local certification and procurement procedures for companies seeking to enter the market.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korea Rural Community Corporation held the second-half 2026 K-AgroEX agricultural machinery and materials export consultation event in Daegu from Wednesday to Thursday, the two organizations announced Tuesday. The event produced $1.35 million in export MOUs and included a briefing session on entering the Philippine agricultural machinery market.
South Korea's cumulative exports surpassed $900 billion for the first time in history through October this year. K-FOOD+ exports also reached $11.9 billion over the same period, a record high. The ministry and the corporation have been supporting domestic companies' overseas expansion to diversify export items and markets for agricultural machinery and materials and increase export volume.
This year, Korean pavilions were operated at overseas trade fairs in Japan, China, Vietnam and Australia, and market development missions were dispatched to Indonesia and Malaysia. The focus has been on expanding contact points between domestic companies and overseas buyers and broadening opportunities to understand local markets.
This time, overseas buyers were invited to Korea. Held in conjunction with the International Agricultural Machinery and Materials Expo in Daegu, the event brought together 24 overseas buyer companies from 13 countries and 55 domestic agricultural machinery and materials firms for export consultations. A preference-based matching system introduced in the first half of the year was applied, identifying each side's products and areas of interest in advance and prioritizing connections between companies with high mutual compatibility.
More than 330 export consultations took place at the venue. Total consultation value came to $22.8 million, of which $1.35 million in export MOUs were signed.
"We were able to meet buyers who were genuinely interested in our products and have substantive discussions," a representative of a participating domestic company said. "We will work to continue follow-up talks as soon as possible and open the door to exports."
A briefing session for agricultural machinery companies seeking to enter the Philippine market was also held at the event. The ministry and the corporation invited Aileen Reyes Ligisan, a section chief at the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) under the Philippine Department of Agriculture, and 44 domestic agricultural machinery companies took part.
Ligisan introduced the direction of the Philippines' agricultural mechanization policy, mechanization demand and market trends. Ligisan also explained practical matters companies need to confirm when entering the local market, including requirements and procedures for government procurement and distribution programs and local certification standards. A question-and-answer session with company representatives followed.
The ministry and the corporation plan to support follow-up consultations for companies that participated in the event. Later this month, they will operate a Korean pavilion at the Growtech Antalya agricultural trade fair in Turkey alongside companies seeking to enter European and Middle Eastern markets. On Dec. 15, they will hold a workshop on expanding agricultural machinery and materials exports to share this year's results and explore strategies for entering overseas markets.
Park Mi-ran, head of the Korea Rural Community Corporation's Smart Technology Division, said the organization is "connecting companies with suitable buyers and providing information on local markets and regulatory systems to expand export opportunities for agricultural machinery and materials firms." Park added that the corporation would "continue working with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to develop diverse support measures that help domestic companies broaden their overseas sales channels."
kkm9971@heraldcorp.com
