On Oct. 7, Wooriga Green Farm, a cherry tomato smart farm in Seobuk District in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, was filled with rows of tomato vines stretching nearly to the greenhouse ceiling. Ripe red tomatoes hung in clusters along both sides of the aisles. They were the last fruits of the summer growing season. The farm’s owner, Woo Min-jae, 32, is considered one of the region’s leading young farmers. He worked for a subcontractor of a major company in the Seoul metropolitan area from 2017 until late 2019, but lost his job when the factory relocated to China. Six years after leaving his job, Woo has transformed himself into a full-fledged farmer, operating a greenhouse operation covering 1,900 square meters. His farm generated 150 million won ($110,000) in revenue last year. Young people like Woo are becoming increasingly scarce in rural areas. According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics, the rural farming population plunged from a little over 3 million in 2010 to just over 2 million in 2024. Over the same period, the proportion of farmers aged 65 and older surged fro