ULAN BATOR, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Mongolian parliament on Friday appointed Chultem Ulaan as the new minister of food, agriculture and light industry.

Ulaan replaced Batjargal Batzorig who resigned late October due to a scandal involving financial irregularities.

An experienced member of the ruling Mongolian People's Party, Ulaan was appointed by 52 lawmakers in the 76-seat parliament.

The 65-year-old served three times as finance minister in 2002-2004, 2007-2008 and 2012-2014. In addition, he served as deputy prime minister in 2004-2006.

"I will pay close attention to meat prices in the domestic market, and to intensifying the implementation of projects related to the sector of food, agriculture and light industry," Ulaan told reporters after the appointment.

Agriculture is a traditional sector of the Asian country, producing approximately 20 percent of gross domestic product as the backbone for population food supply and domestic plants raw materials.