The Unification Ministry says a civic group's plan to send fertilizer aid to North Korea should be discussed with the government.

In a Monday briefing, ministry spokesman Kim Eui-do said civic-level fertilizer aid to the North stopped after the ban on cross-border trade and exchange took effect in May 2010. The measure was put in place following North Korea's torpedoing of a South Korean Navy vessel.

Kim said that is not to say the 2010 ban affects specific goods such as fertilizer and rice, but aid provision to the North in general is affected by government policies because of the ban.

The spokesman said the government is not considering sending any fertilizer aid to the North at the moment.

The Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation launched a campaign last Thursday on sending one million sacks of fertilizer to North Korea. 

Kim's remarks come a day after Pyongyang fired 25 short-range rockets from its east coast.