WINNERS GALLERY

At the 15^th National Brand Awards of Korea, Uljin Snow Crab (County Mayor Son Byeong-bok) was selected as the winner for the 8^th consecutive year in the crab category. Uljin Snow Crab inhabits ultra-fine mud areas at depths ranging from 200 to 400 meters around Wangdolcho, Uljin, which has the perfect marine environment where cold and warm currents meet. Unlike crabs from other regions, Uljin Snow Crab is distinguished by its strong sweetness and intense aroma, garnering significant love from consumers.

Behind the recognition of Uljin Snow Crab as a premium product lies the fervent efforts of fishermen. Over 90 ships with snow crab gill nests are registered in Jukbyeon Port, Hupo Port, and Gusan Port. and have voluntarily formed the ‘Snow Crab Gill Net Autonomous Community.’ Through this community, they have been continuously engaged in activities such as ‘cultivating crab habitats’ and ‘marine resource conservation.’ The community △ legally bans snow crab fishing from June to October to protect crab resources and has been implementing a ‘voluntary closed season’ in November when they previously caught snow crab for over 20 years. Moreover, △they limit the daily catch per boat to 600 crabs to preserve and manage resources and △conduct cleanup operations to collect lost or abandoned fishing nets in May when snow crab fishing is closed to restore the crab habitat.

Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and Uljin County have created favorable fishing environments using Crab Nurturing Beds (artificial crab habitats) as a part of the project to form an environment supporting the spawning of female crabs. Uljin County has also implemented a ‘quality assurance system’ to instill consumer trust alongside creating an environment conducive to the growth of premium crabs.

The ‘2024 Uljin Snow Crab and Red Crab Festival’, held at Wangdolcho Square in Hupo Port in February, features ‘Wangdolcho Bakdal Crab’ and ‘Wangdolcho Red Crab’as soft shell snow crabs among the Uljin Snow Crabs. This differentiation from other crabs enhances consumer trust, ensuring they are sought after and relied upon. The quality assurance system is independently managed by the crab gill net autonomous management community (Chairman Im Gi-bong and Oh Jeong-hwan), the group of producers that rigorously verifies and manages quality from the auction stage in National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, continuing throughout the year even after the crab festival.

County Mayor Son Byeong-bok stated, “The grand prize in the snow crab category in the National Brand Awards for 8 consecutive years is the fruit of fishermen’s efforts that have nurtured and cultivated snow crabs themselves.” He added, “In the future, we will strive to promote a transformation in the fishing industry through improvements in distribution systems and other means, ensuring the development of fisheries and aquaculture to the best of our abilities.”