Coupang will triple its direct purchases of Ugok green watermelons, a specialty of Goryeong County in North Gyeongsang Province, from a year earlier and offer them for dawn delivery nationwide. Coupang said on May 12 it will expand purchases from about 5,000 melons last year to about 15,000 this year and sell them through its Rocket Fresh dawn-delivery service. The move follows a business agreement signed with the Goryeong County Office in April last year and is part of a pledge to increase fruit purchases from about 500 local farms and expand nationwide sales channels.

Ugok green watermelons have an average sweetness of 13 brix or more and are grown based on the region’s large day-to-night temperature swings and abundant sunlight. Despite their quality, farm profitability has remained low due to field-by-field trading practices, lower output and shrinking cultivation areas. Distribution channels have also been limited to the local market rather than nationwide, making market expansion a task.

Ugok green watermelons are a short-term crop that can be shipped for only about a month starting as early as late April. Coupang plans to raise farm income through nationwide dawn delivery timed to the harvest period. The company said it sharply increased supply this year, reflecting that the product sold out early during Coupang sales last year.

Park Myung-hoe (박명회), head of the Ugok Green Watermelon joint shipping association, said, "Customer response was so strong that it sold out early during Coupang sales last year, so supply has been greatly increased this year and farm income has risen." Shin Hye-kyung (신혜경), head of the distribution and processing team at the agricultural policy division of the Goryeong County Office, said, "We expect direct purchases with Coupang will allow watermelon farms to generate more stable income."

Coupang sees the cooperation contributing to revitalising the local economy, which is struggling due to population decline. It plans to continue working with Goryeong County and gradually expand online sales channels for the region’s agricultural products.

A Coupang official said, "Through cooperation with local governments, we are pleased to provide stable sales channels for local farms and to offer customers high-quality agricultural products from across the country at reasonable prices." The official added, "We will continue to expand a win-win model that can grow together with local communities."