Feature Songsan Grapes Ripening in Sea Breezes and Harsh Sunlight…The 40-Year Harvest of Farmers

As the '12th Hwaseong Songsan Grape Festival' is scheduled to take place at Eco Farm Theme Park from September 5-6, interest in 'Hwaseong Songsan Grapes' is rising.

'Hwaseong Songsan Grapes' combine abundant sunshine and sea breezes from the West Coast, farmers' cultivation expertise, and cutting-edge agricultural technology to boast outstanding sweetness and quality. Additionally, based on the high awareness built within the domestic market, they are expanding distribution channels to overseas markets and solidifying their position as a global premium grape representative of South Korea.

◇From Tidal Flats to Premium Vineyards…The 40-Year History of 'Songsan Grapes' Developed by Songsan Residents

The history of 'Hwaseong Songsan Grapes' began in the late 1980s on reclaimed land created by the construction of the Shihwa Dyke. Before the Shihwa Dyke was constructed, Songsan-myeon was surrounded by sea on three sides, and residents made a living through a semi-agricultural, semi-fishing (半農半漁) lifestyle combining farming and fishing.

However, with the construction of the Shihwa Dyke, the surrounding environment and livelihood conditions changed dramatically, and residents of Songsan-myeon and Seosin-myeon began seeking new sources of income. In this process, they noticed that the West Coast's maritime climate, significant temperature variations between day and night, and mineral-rich loamy soil of the reclaimed land were suitable for grape cultivation, and began planting grapevines.

Initially, the most popular variety, Campbell Early, dominated, but farmers actively adopted rain-shelter cultivation and eco-friendly farming methods, diversifying cultivation varieties and consistently improving quality.

Recently, diversifying to approximately 30 varieties including Shine Muscat, Benibara, and Coco Ball, they have emerged as Korea's representative year-round grape production region. As of 2025, Hwaseong's grape cultivation area reaches approximately 750 hectares, with approximately 1,500 farming households, and annual production volume reaches 2,400 tons based on shipments from Songsan, Seosin, and Mado Agricultural Cooperatives. Among these, an export council consisting of approximately 40 farming households exports approximately 200 tons of grapes annually to 10 countries including the United States and Southeast Asia, establishing itself as the nation's premier grape production region in substance and name.

◇"Controlling Farm Temperature with a Smartphone"…Major Transformation in Advanced Agriculture through Smart Farm Program

Hwaseong Special City has made continuous efforts in technology development and adoption of cutting-edge agriculture to cultivate 'Songsan Grapes' as a regional representative brand with quality competitiveness.

In particular, in 2015, the city developed the nation's first 'open-field fruit grape smart farm program' and proactively established an integrated grape smart farm control system and ICT comprehensive information system, marking a major turning point for 'Hwaseong Songsan Grapes'.

Grapes cultivated in an open outdoor environment face the limitation of difficulty in artificially controlling weather and growing conditions. Accordingly, Hwaseong Special City's Agricultural Technology Center accumulates and analyzes environmental information and growth imaging data collected at 10-minute intervals from farms in the integrated control system, and based on this, diagnoses grape growth status and environmental characteristics for each farm, providing customized data consulting.

Currently, 70 grape farms in the jurisdiction are actively utilizing the city's smart farm program. Farmers check farm conditions in real-time using smartphones and remotely control irrigation, ventilation window opening and closing, circulating fan operation, and nutrient supply anytime and anywhere.

Farmer A, who actually adopted smart farming for grape cultivation, expressed satisfaction, saying, "Using a smartphone, I can remotely control circulating fan operation and manage temperature and ventilation anytime and anywhere, which greatly helps reduce labor."

◇Hwaseong Special City Implements Customized Consulting with '100% Close-Contact Care' for Grape Farmers' Challenges

Furthermore, the city is actively promoting 'guidance and consulting projects' to improve the quality of 'Hwaseong Songsan Grapes'. This year, it completed a total of 76 on-site consulting sessions including 48 grape consulting and 28 grape smart farm consulting sessions, and conducted a total of 7 customized educational programs for 819 grape farmers in the jurisdiction.

Additionally, centered on three specialized research groups—Women Grape Research Group, Hwaseong Grape Research Group, and New Variety Grape Research Group—regular general meetings, project education, and field study tours are operated to support information exchange among farming households for high-quality grape production.

Furthermore, the city has constructed a 735.1 square-meter demonstration experimental field (automated greenhouse 360.8 square meters, rain-shelter facility 374.3 square meters) within the Fruit Excellence Business Division of Hwaseong Agricultural Technology Center and is utilizing it in various ways as a field for variety-specific cultivation demonstration and exhibition, and for field education.

The demonstration experimental field is planted with a total of 20 varieties and 74 grapevines including Coco Ball, Gold Sweet, Summer Crispy, and Gloria Star. The city plans to further strengthen field-oriented technical support by precisely analyzing the growth characteristics, sweetness, and ripening periods of diversifying new variety grapes, proactively discovering high-quality varieties resilient to climate change, and enabling farmers in the jurisdiction to rapidly acquire high-value-added cultivation techniques.

◇'12th Hwaseong Songsan Grape Festival' to be Held at Hwaseong Eco Farm Theme Park on Sept. 5-6

Meanwhile, the '12th Hwaseong Songsan Grape Festival' will be held over two days on September 5 (Saturday) and 6 (Sunday), with main events taking place at Hwaseong Eco Farm Theme Park (24 Yeongjongroang-gil, Seosin-myeon, Manse-gu). A dedicated grape sales booth where farm-direct grapes can be purchased at affordable prices will be set up at the Rural Development Administration temporary parking lot (699 Gungpyeong-ri, Seosin-myeon, Manse-gu).

The festival is hosted and organized by the 'Hwaseong Songsan Grape Festival Promotion Committee' comprised of Songsan grape producers under the slogan 'The Journey of One Cluster, Hwaseong Songsan Grape Farm-to-Fiesta!'. Hwaseong Special City supports the successful hosting of the festival by providing a total budget of 279 million won and establishing administrative and safety measures.

On the first day, there will be an opening ceremony, congratulatory performances (including singer Park Hyun-bin), and citizen karaoke, while the second day will feature cultural performances and taekwondo demonstrations. In particular, throughout the festival period, signature experiences of stomping and picking grapes will be held alongside tasting and sales booths for 'grape juice' and 'grape bread' desserts that young farmers will showcase firsthand, providing unique enjoyment.

◇Mayor Jung Myeong-geun of Hwaseong Special City: "Wishing You to Savor the Autumn Atmosphere at the 'Hwaseong Songsan Grape Festival'"

Mayor Jung Myeong-geun of Hwaseong Special City stated, "'Hwaseong Songsan Grapes' are Hwaseong's finest premium specialty product combining West Coast sea breezes, farmers' blood and sweat, and the city's smart farm technology support," and added, "Even amid difficult conditions such as abnormal weather and aging farming populations, they are maintaining the reputation of Korea's finest fruit through the adoption of cutting-edge cultivation technologies like smart farms and continuous quality innovation."

Additionally, Mayor Jung said, "I hope you will visit the scent-filled '12th Hwaseong Songsan Grape Festival' this coming weekend to taste sweet grapes and fully enjoy the abundance of autumn."