[Special Interview] New IPET President Park Hong-jae: “Real R&D Means Deployment in the Field…Creating a Dedicated Department for Performance Dissemination”

“For a long

"We will fuse the on-site wisdom accumulated by farmers over a long period with advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and bio. We will make the Korea Institute of Planning and Evaluation for Technology in Food, Agriculture and Forestry (hereinafter IPET) into an 'innovation platform' that solves the pressing challenges of agricultural sites and creates future value."

At a time when Korean agriculture faces unprecedented major challenges such as the climate crisis, food security, and global economic volatility, the resolve of President Park Hong-jae, who has newly taken office as the head of the Korea Institute of Planning and Evaluation for Technology in Food, Agriculture and Forestry (hereinafter IPET), was exceptional. Since first entering public service in 1996 as a rural extension officer, he has spent more than 30 years working in both central and local field settings, and began his term carrying the symbolism of being the “first president from a rural guidance officer background” since IPET’s establishment. Emphasizing that “the answer is always in the field,” President Park Hong-jae met with us on the 13th in his office at IPET in Naju, Jeollanam-do, where we discussed the future and blueprint of Korean agricultural R&D that he envisions. The key points emphasized by President Park Hong-jae are organized below by topic.

 Part 1. Fusion of field wisdom and advanced technology: the first rural guidance officer chief’s promise of structural reform

-Congratulations on your appointment as the 7th president of IPET. You began as a rural extension officer and rose to lead IPET. Please share your thoughts on taking office and your special determination.
“First of all, I feel a very heavy sense of responsibility in taking on the important role of president of IPET, which leads agricultural and food science and technology. At present, our agriculture is facing major crises and challenges such as the climate crisis, food security, and deepening global economic volatility. To overcome these waves, innovation is absolutely necessary by combining the wisdom accumulated over a long period in agricultural industry sites with advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and bio.
Over the past 30-plus years, working across both field sites and policy, I have keenly realized that ‘the answer that can turn crisis into opportunity is ultimately in the field.’ Going forward, I will devote all my experience and capabilities so that IPET can fully play the role of an ‘innovation platform’ that swiftly solves the pressing challenges of agricultural sites and creates future value.”

-As the ‘first president from a rural guidance officer background’ since IPET’s establishment, expectations and attention are high both inside and outside the organization. As a ‘field expert,’ what kind of differentiation do you think your practical experience can bring to IPET’s future R&D planning and management methods?
“Knowing the field well means being able to present a clear field-centered ‘reference point’ and ‘direction’ in planning and managing agri-food R&D and disseminating its outcomes. First, I will identify and reflect the actual needs of farmers and agricultural businesses in very fine detail. I will reform the system so that R&D projects and research tasks that the field truly needs are planned and invested in.
At the same time, while strictly adhering to a fair evaluation system based on regulations and principles, I plan to advance the R&D management method toward a performance- and utilization-centered approach so that ‘field applicability’ and ‘potential for commercialization and industrialization’ are treated as core evaluation factors within that framework. My unique strength is building a solid foundation through which the voice of the field can be realized fairly and effectively within the R&D support system and institutions.”

-In your inaugural address, you emphasized “the fusion of wisdom accumulated in the field over a long period and advanced technology.” What is the concrete blueprint of the ‘field-tailored advanced agricultural technology’ that you envision?
“I want to embody the experience and know-how that farmers have acquired over many years through advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, and mobility, and spread them as ‘field solutions’ that anyone can easily use. To this end, based on the philosophy that ‘the answer to the problem is in the field,’ I will promote close, field-oriented communication by directly visiting farmers, companies, and related institutions. In cooperation with internal members as well as external experts by technology field, I will directly ask and identify what the urgent needs of the field are. By closely linking the field demands discovered in this way with advanced technology convergence R&D, I will build a strong foundation for innovation that prepares for the future of Korea’s agricultural industry.”

Part 2. R&D budget efficiency and open innovation: securing a 350 billion won budget and a multi-ministry package plan

-Recently, calls have been growing for greater efficiency and stronger outcomes in public R&D budgets. I believe this is in line with your commitment to open innovation. What areas would you especially like to strengthen in the R&D planning and management stages?
“To generate clear ripple effects by efficiently using a limited R&D budget, I believe we must secure national core technologies through industry-academia-research cooperation and firmly establish a support system that allows developed technologies to take stable root in the field. First, I will transform IPET into a ‘collaboration platform’ that brings together central ministries, local governments, universities, companies, and farmers, thereby strengthening an open innovation system. I will greatly expand communication and collaboration so that the entire process—from project planning to research support, outcome creation and demonstration, field dissemination, and industrialization—proceeds organically. I intend to lead the planning of future new technology fields such as artificial intelligence and robotics and support R&D in those areas to drive the creation of high added value in the agricultural industry.
To ensure we do not remain at the level of research for the sake of research, I will focus on ‘planning new value-creating projects’ that align with policy and industrial investment directions, such as smart agriculture and food tech. By strategically supporting convergence research tasks that reflect field demand, I will create a public R&D ecosystem that delivers the greatest ripple effect relative to input.”

-Even if technology is developed, it is useless if it does not spread to farms and industrial sites. Please explain your plan to increase the effectiveness of R&D outcomes and improve the degree to which farmers and the public can feel the impact.
“Now we must boldly break away from research that only fills quantitative targets. I will reorganize the R&D management system so that, at the point when research ends, it secures ‘practical outputs’ such as demonstration models, prototypes, standardized technologies, and field manuals that can be immediately seen and used on site.
In addition, the true value of public R&D is only completed when the public can directly feel it in their lives. Accordingly, IPET will focus on actively informing farmers and the public about excellent R&D outcomes. In particular, we will greatly expand the ‘public relations’ function for disseminating research outcomes so that we can clearly show and make it easy to understand what users most want to know: ‘What changes in the field?’ Through organization-wide efforts, we will make the public tangibly feel the ripple effects of public R&D.”
 

-Climate change, a declining rural population, and aging are immediately threatening the survival of our agriculture. To overcome these crises, what core technology fields will IPET support as the top priority, and how do you plan to implement this?
“The key to overcoming the crisis ultimately lies in responding to the great AI transformation and in the convergence and utilization of advanced technologies such as smart agriculture, bio, and food tech. In line with the government’s policy direction, the R&D budget is gradually expanding. Based on this, we plan to concentrate budget investment in AI convergence technology fields such as ‘agricultural industry robots’ to replace the severe labor shortage in rural areas and ‘development of climate-adaptive varieties’ to respond to climate change. However, we must not become so absorbed in the glamorous name of ‘advanced technology’ that technologies emerge which are disconnected from the field. By constantly meeting and communicating with farmers and businesspeople in the field, I will plan and support the most practical and field-oriented R&D so that the problems they feel are most urgent can be clearly solved with advanced technology.”

-This year, IPET’s budget is about 237.5 billion won. You have said that you will secure more than 350 billion won for agri-food R&D. Increasing the budget by more than 100 billion won appears to be no easy task. How do you plan to secure the budget?
“As the head of an institution, securing the budget is always a heavy task. In truth, it is not easy for IPET alone to secure a large-scale budget. That is why we must change the paradigm. The breakthrough is a ‘multi-ministry package project’ that breaks down barriers between ministries. AI-based physical robots and future high-value bio industries are not issues for agriculture alone. If projects are planned jointly with related ministries such as the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Korea Forest Service, and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, centered on the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and IPET, then a rationale for securing the budget is created. To this end, I instructed staff to proactively identify multi-ministry projects with the goal of launching them in 2028.”

Part 3. Organizational innovation and a leap in global competitiveness: advancing an AI-based smart R&D system

-As a task for internal organizational innovation, you proposed ‘establishing a smart R&D planning and management system utilizing artificial intelligence.’ Specifically, how do you plan to apply AI technology to IPET’s systems and project management?
“The core of this innovation is to establish a system in which decision-making does not rely on intuition or custom, but is managed precisely through thorough use of data. During the tenure of former President Noh Soo-hyun, IPET took the lead in building ‘AGRENA,’ an AI system specialized for agri-food R&D management, using its own capabilities. We will move quickly to advance and reorganize this system so that it can produce substantial effects in actual work. Based on the vast amount of R&D information we have accumulated, we will use AI to precisely analyze global technology trends and industrial and technological demand, and proactively identify promising future technologies. If this data-based system takes root, it will be able to provide effective R&D support in the right place at the right time for researchers, farmers, companies, and other industrial sites.”

-Strengthening the expertise of internal staff and building a ‘collaborative organizational culture centered on communication and problem-solving’ is also an important issue. If you have any plans you have been considering for this, please explain.
“In my inaugural address as well, I asked employees to ‘become the best experts in their respective roles and positions.’ I hope staff will establish themselves as ‘coordinators’ who organically connect industry, technology, and policy. To this end, I will greatly expand education, training, and fellowship opportunities to strengthen the capabilities of executives and staff and enhance each individual’s expertise. If there is any siloed administration that creates barriers between departments, I will boldly reorganize it to create a collaborative organization that solves problems flexibly. In addition, I aim for a warm community in which people respect and care for one another. By benchmarking innovation cases from various institutions and sufficiently gathering employees’ opinions, I will establish a healthy and warm culture unique to IPET.”

-Your strong network with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Rural Development Administration, local agricultural research and extension services, and academic societies is considered a major strength. What specific cooperation plans do you have to create R&D synergy with external related institutions?
“Drawing on the practical experience I built up in both the central government and local field settings, I will break down barriers between institutions and maximize linkage effects. For R&D outcomes to have field impact rather than ending in the laboratory, organic integration is essential. IPET will serve as a firm central axis and build a system in which ‘the government’s agricultural policy and R&D policy,’ ‘the Rural Development Administration’s basic research,’ and ‘the field guidance and dissemination functions of local agricultural research and extension institutes and agricultural technology centers’ operate like interlocking gears without disconnection. So that this collaboration does not depend solely on my personal human network, I will firmly systematize it through institutional mechanisms such as MOUs. Through this, I will strengthen the most powerful and efficient collaboration system through which excellent R&D outcomes quickly spread to the field and lead to technology commercialization, sales creation, and even exports.”

-What role do you believe IPET should play in securing the global competitiveness of Korean agricultural technology and helping Korean agricultural companies enter overseas markets?
“If in the past our agri-food R&D was a ‘follower’ chasing advanced countries, now we must leap forward as a ‘leader’ that overwhelmingly widens the technology gap and drives the paradigm of the global market. IPET’s role is to lay a strong bridgehead so that proven domestic R&D success models can expand overseas.
To this end, I will expand the global research cooperation network. By establishing practical cooperation systems with major overseas research institutions, I will help our agricultural industry science and technology—such as K-food, agricultural machinery and materials, and seeds—take root on the global stage. Second, I will prepare detailed follow-up support linked to exports after technology development. I will devise multifaceted implementation measures so that IPET’s R&D outcomes can be organically linked with export support projects of the government or local governments. By completing a dissemination strategy in which R&D is directly connected to overseas expansion, I will support K-agricultural technology in creating tremendous added value on the world stage.”
 

Part 4. A firm promise to farmers and the public

-What are the key achievements you most want to accomplish during your term, and how would you like to be remembered when you eventually leave office?
“My top priority is to create major R&D outcomes and successful commercialization cases that can be immediately felt in agricultural industry sites. During my time as head of the Jeollanam-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services, I had the valuable experience of successfully industrializing ‘Heukharang lettuce’ and establishing an export model for domestically produced kiwifruit. I want to widely spread and firmly establish this success DNA and know-how through IPET’s R&D platform.
When I leave after completing my term, if I can be remembered as ‘a president who understood central and local administration more deeply than anyone else, and who best scratched where farmers and industrial sites itched and solved their problems,’ that would be the greatest honor of my public service career.”

-The hardships of farmers and livestock producers in the field are deepening day by day due to climate change and rising raw material and feed costs. Lastly, please share a message of hope for farmers in the field, IPET staff, researchers, and the public.
“Farm households and the field as a whole are enduring a very difficult period due to rising costs and unstable domestic demand. As someone who stayed in the field for a long time, I feel the weight of that exhaustion and hardship more deeply than anyone. However, crisis has always been an opportunity for new innovation. By adding IPET’s advanced science and technology to the field wisdom that farmers have accumulated over many years, I will become the strongest and most reliable partner in overcoming the rough waves of the present together. I will also sincerely listen to the voices of the field and work together to solve various problems. Please continue to show your affection and interest in IPET and in the development of agri-food science and technology.”