Euna Farm

A. Overview

Euna Farm is located at Geumdang 2-ri, Ganam-myeon, Yeojoo-si (city), Gyeonggi-do, and operated by the farm owner couple and their two daughters for activities and tourism. They moved in the current site in 1983 to raise Hanwoo (Korean native cattle). They bought milk cows in 1990 to establish Euna farm.

They supply milk to Yeonse Milk and obtained a permit for milk processing. The farm was selected as a farm for activities by the Dairy Farming Promotion Society to operate the dairy farm for activities. The couple and two daughters sell milk, cheese, yogurt and confectionery on line and in the farm, and operate the farm for visitor’s activities.

Table 3-17. Euna Farm Overview

Description

○ Material: milk cows, activity farm, livestock products (raw milk), local agricultural products (pizza, agricul-tural products for ice cream toppings).

Customer ○ Visitors from other areas, local consumers, students, overseas visitors.

Business (goods, service) ○ Process livestock products in the farm. Tourism, sale.

Outcome of vitalized community

○ Family-oriented management, increased income by tourism farm.

○ Sell local agricultural products and create jobs.

○ Enhance reputation of the region.

Implications

○ The family-oriented livestock farm changed to a farm for activities and tourism to increase farm’s income and enhance reputation of the region. Employ more people and facilitate more consumption of agricultural products.

The major management outcome in 2012 was the gross income of approximately 600 million won, that is, 380 million from produced milk, 210 million won from activities in the dairy farm, 10 million won from dairy product sale, one million won from confectionery sale, and 7 million won from accommodation rent. The website ‘Green Euna Farm’ is in operation since 2006, and was selected as Milk School by Gyeonggi-do council. Four people including the owner couple and their two daughters, who employ temporary female and male workers in busy seasons with many visitors, manage the farm.

Table 3-18. Key management of Euna Farm (2012)

unit: people, 10,000 won

Gross income

Manage-ment

Key business outcome Raw milk Farm

activities

Dairy products

Confec-tionery

Accommoda-tion rent

60,000 4 38,000 21,000 1,000 100 700

B. History and business structure

Euna Farm was established by a returner couple who wanted to become a farmer in 1983 by growing Hanwoo cows. They then bought milk cows and also currently supply raw milk. They started dairy farming with 3 fresh cows in 1984 and named the farm Euna in 1990. They started supplying raw milk to Pasteur Milk in 1995. Their farm was certified as a farm for dairy farm activities by the Dairy Farm Society in 2006, was appointed as a milk school by Gyeonggi-do council, obtained a permit for processing dairy product for Euna Farm, and was certified as a HACCP farm in 2012.

Euna Farm focused on producing raw milk by livestock business, but excessive raw milk weakened profitability. They visited farms in advanced countries, like Japan while competitiveness was not great to introduce a process of producing ideal processed products on the basis of produced raw milk. They also incorporated the farm with tourism to enhance added values of the farm.

The scale of Euna Farm is 52.230 m² composed of one cowshed (2,640 m²), cow feed and grass land (40.568 m²), 90 calves, and other animals for activity tourists (milk cows, horses, fowls, geese, ducks, dogs, rabbits, sheep).

The facilities for activities and producing processed dairy products include cheese making and aging room (150 m²), buildings for making dairy products (380 m², 3 buildings), other livestock activity sites (298 m²), a shop for selling dairy products (32 m²), facilities for convenience (25 m²), an accommodation for visitors (180 m²), and a plurality of facilities for processing dairy products.

1) Business structure

The owner couple of Euna Farm changed their business from Hanwoo cow farming that started in 1983 as a returner to become a farmer to dairying. The owner couple is devoted to milk cow farming; the first daughter to confectionery and baking; and the second daughter to cheese making. They divide the activity farm work as a family farm among themselves for operation. At the time when more people visit the farm, they employ 5 to 6 female workers, and male workers for weeding.

(1) Decision-making

The structure of decision-making in the farm is centered at the couple, and their children also participate in decision-making. Two daughters play the central role now to lead business diversification. Their father is devoted to raising milk cows, managing the farm and the accommodation. Two daughters and their mother are in charge of managing activity visitors, manufacturing and selling livestock products.

(2) Securing capital

They invest a given amount of capital for themselves in family-farm management, and use government subsidy projects and municipality subsidy projects. Euna Farm’s use of government subsidy projects includes 300 million won (self-payment inclusive) including 100 million won in 2008, 100 million won in 2009.

2) Business operation

(1) Participating farmers

At present, no neighboring farms and residents participate in Euna Farm business. Euna Farm is operated as a private family farm. However, the owner wants to organize a cooperative for operating facilities for activity visitors and selling livestock products to initiate a business for local agricultural and livestock products. In particular, she has a plan to make a joint brand of the regions involved in processed dairy products (yogurt, cheese, etc.) to enhance recognition and also to further grow the business.

However, cooperation with producers related to agricultural and livestock products in the region faces a lot of difficulty due to geographical limitations and practices.

(2) Sale

Euna Farm supplies a part of market milk to related enterprises, and processes its raw milk as dairy products, for example, cheese and yogurt to sell them to activity visitors and consumers. The dairy products produced in the farm are sold through direct sale (60%) and online, for example, through the Internet (40%).

For continual growth of the farm, the owner has a plan to build a cooperative relation with local agricultural and livestock farmers, and to open a farm restaurant for more profits from processed dairy products. He also makes an effort to supply processed dairy products to neighboring schools for students.