Finance minister Choi Sang-mok pledged to put forth measures to enhance competitiveness of the nation's fruit industry to prevent a recurrence of sudden price hike from apple harvest depression.

On a visit to a local supermarket run by the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation on Monday, Choi said the government is preparing to boost the industry's competitiveness as part of efforts to improve the distribution structure amid abnormal temperatures.

The minister promised to support disaster prevention facilities during production, better manage supply during distribution and to introduce fruits with high productivity.

The government plans to establish next-generation orchard complexes with at least double the productivity, while drastically expanding supplies of around 105-thousand tons of apples and pears under contract cultivation this year.

Once prices of agricultural products stabilize, the minister forecast inflation to drop to the low- to mid-two-percent range in the second half of the year.