South Korea opens agrifood big data to private sector

The South Korean Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs will launch the ‘Agrifood Big Data Cloud Service’ on the 26th, opening previously restricted data to the public and private sectors. Previously, agrifood big data was primarily utilized by government officials through an internal analysis platform, limiting direct access for citizens and businesses.

The new cloud-based service will provide 35 types of highly actionable data, including agricultural product prices, pest information, and livestock diseases. This data can be downloaded or directly integrated into external services and programs via Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).

Additionally, the ministry will release metadata for 166 types of big data, detailing the content, format, source, and update cycles of each dataset. This allows users to identify specific information held by the ministry and request access through a consultation process. The ministry plans to expand the scope of available data based on user demand and feedback.