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Ranchers.net

Creekstone readies beef for S. Korea

By DAVE SEATON
Staff Writer

Creekstone Farms Premium Beef will soon be sending a sizable shipment of beef to South Korea, Rusty Wright, Creekstone's director of human resources, said today.

Creekstone is one of several U.S. packers qualified to resume exports to South Korea "with certain conditions," Wright told a Winfield Area Chamber of Commerce breakfast at the Winfield Community Center.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is expected to announce the renewal of American beef sales to South Korea June 7, Wright said.

He did not comment on the size of Creekstone's shipment nor the conditions involved. "Wait until June 7," he said.

Following the lead of Japan, South Korea banned U.S. beef imports after two cases of mad cow disease were discovered in this country. The South Korean government said earlier this year it was prepared to renew U.S. imports.

Wright put a high value on South Korean buyers. "They will be the crown jewel of our international market," he said.

Creekstone has said it lost up to 25 percent of its total sales when Japan banned U.S. beef. The company has sued the USDA to allow it to test 100 percent of the animals it processes for mad cow disease, as it says Japanese buyers demand.

Wright questioned the science of the USDA's case against 100 percent testing. Little is known about the prion (protein) that causes the disease, Wright said, and "There are a ton of holes in regard to this in the scientific community."

Creekstone relies on the international market to buy its products that are not popular in this country, at premium prices, Wright said. Japanese consumers will pay $35 a pound for tongue, he said, South Americans like intestines, and Europeans "love the round."

Wright reminded an audience of about 30 this country was built by immigrants. "We have to be true to our roots," he said. "If we forget this lesson, I think we'll go tumbling back."

Wright said he had received "lots of hate mail" after Creekstone encouraged its employees to take the day off to march for immigrant rights May 1.

He described a number of ways immigrant workers can come to this country legally and how an employer can verify their status, including the use of a federally approved computer program called Basic Pilot.

Wright, an attorney, also described several ways illegal immigrants can obtain false documents, especially Social Security cards. An employer's best defense against such fraud is common sense, he said.

Wright is the chair of the board of the Arkansas City Area Chamber of Commerce. Creekstone's plant is located in Arkansas City.
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