Agriculture Minister Song Mi-ryung said on Sunday that the prices of farm products are expected to stabilize to normal levels next month.

Appearing on a KBS program, the minister said that Korean melons and other local fruits will begin to hit the market in April, and then the prices are likely to stabilize to the levels seen in previous years.

Minister Song said that the injection of 150 billion won in state funds for stabilizing agricultural prices is starting to take effect gradually, vowing pan-government efforts until the prices stabilize to previous years.

The minister said that hoarding of farm products was not found in the government’s monitoring, adding that there is a government task force to monitor and check acts of hoarding and inflating prices.

Regarding possible imports of Japanese apples, Song said that it is hard to predict the timing.

As for the serious decline in the rural population, Song said that it is not just a problem in rural areas but a crisis that can spread to their neighboring cities and the entire nation.