President Kim Jae-su of Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trading Corp. (aT) became the longest-serving CEO in any government-owned company in Korea when he was reappointed to serve another term Nov. 24.
He was first appointed to serve as the CEO of aT on Oct. 14, 2011, and due to his excellent leadership there in the first three-year term, his term was extended for a year on Oct. 27 last year before. He was again reappointed to serve another full term on Nov. 24 this year to become the longest serving CEO of a state-owned firm and the first CEO to be named to serve another tenure since term limits were introduced in 2007 for CEOs of state-owned companies in Korea.
He will be serving for five years as the CEO of aT.
Kim is an agricultural policy expert, having some 30 years experience in handling agricultural policies at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. In that time he’s won accolades for creative ideas and the introduction of new systems.
After his time at ministry, Kim moved on to aT. Among his many achievements since coming to aT as the CEO four years ago is the introduction of a cyber trading system, which is so successful that sales have reached over 2 trillion won per year; exports of food and agricultural products have more than doubled despite worsening export conditions; and stabilizing the cost of distribution for agricultural produce and products. He also has been given credit for launching a network for college students of agricultural in an effort to create jobs for youths in the sector under a new vision of development.
President Kim said, “I am grateful for my reappointment to service another term when the public expectations for the CEOs of state-run companies run high now. I feel a huge responsibility as the reappoint means that I should double my effort to serve the company and do my best to further develop the agricultural and food industries in response to the people’s unlimited trust in me,.”
In the meantime, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA), in cooperation with aT, opened the Qingdao Korea Agricultural, Fisheries and Food Center in Qingdao, Shandung Province, China, on Nov. 28. The aim is to promote exports of Korean agricultural produce and products, including food, at a time when demand for Korean agricultural produce in China has been rising due to increased earnings of the people in China. The exports of Korean farm produce and other food have been rising at the rate of more than 26 percent annually over the past five years. However, due to the lack of a distribution system in China, sales had been limited to big cities in the country.
However, aT set up the Qingdae Korean Food Distribution Company in 2011 and began the work to set up the center in Qingdao.
President Kim Jae-su and Deputy Minister Lee Joon-won of the Food Industry Office of MAFRA, Mayor Chiang Shinchi of Qingdao, Counselor General Lee Soo-jon of the Korean Counselor Office in Qingdao, and others attended the ceremony to open the center.
Since its inception in 1967, Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) has been striving to establish a foundation for advancement of agricultural product industry and promote export of agricultural and fishery products over past decades by means of stabilizing prices, foreign trade promotion, marketing support and food processing support.
Until 1986, aT had concentrated efforts on developing and supporting agricultural and fishery industries to narrow the gap between farming and manufacturing industries, and then it expanded its business activities to strengthen distribution structure and promote export of agricultural produce and products from Korea.
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