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More evidence of failed S Korea policy

Sandhusker

Well-known member
US beef has returned to South Korean store shelves for the first time under a new import agreement that has failed to stem anti-government protests.

The government said it would take tough action to stop the increasingly violent rallies in Seoul, which began two months ago with schoolgirls holding peaceful candlelight vigils.

But the protests have been seen club-wielding demonstrators trying to break through barricades of police buses under showers of water cannons.

"What began as a peaceful candlelight rally has changed in nature to a point where it is difficult to see any purity in its cause," Prime Minister Han Seung-soo told a Cabinet meeting.

American beef went on sale without any fanfare and was limited to 440 pounds at a store run by the head of the Korea Meat Import Association.

Large supermarket chains have said they will not sell American beef due to the negative public sentiment, and restaurants across the country have said they would not serve it.

South Korean branches of US fast food chain McDonald's have actively publicised that they use Australian beef, not American.
US beef imports to South Korea have been largely banned since 2003, when the first case of mad cow disease was discovered there.

South Korea's new pro-US President Lee Myung-bak agreed to lift the import ban in April just before a summit with US President George Bush.

But the move provoked a backlash over health concerns spurred in part by false media reports about risks, along with a sense that South Korea had backed down too easily to American pressure.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
This was in a Chinese newspaper- so its giving folks worldwide a lovely view of US beef :wink: :( Thank you USDA, NCBA and you too MRJ for continuing to drink the Kool Aid....... :(

Over 500,000 S Koreans to hold protest against U.S. beef imports in Seoul


www.chinaview.cn 2008-07-05 13:32:52



SEOUL, July 5 (Xinhua) -- More than 500,000 South Koreans will hold a candlelight vigil in central Seoul on Saturday night to protest against American beef imports, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported.

Organizers said the upcoming demonstration in front of the Seoul City Hall will be one of the largest against U.S. beef import so far and will be participated by religious groups, opposition lawmakers, labor unionists, and civic activists.

Although the organizers promised it will be a peaceful event, the authorities have tighten security measures in the capital city in case of violent conflicts between the protesters and the police.

The demonstrations against South Korea's beef imports from the United States have last for about two months nationwide. Protesters criticized the government hurried to sign a deal to resume U.S. beef imports in April as they claimed the U.S. beef may not be safe from mad cow disease.
 

Sandhusker

Well-known member
It's nothing to get concerned about, OT. MRJ says it's just a political ploy and that they're hired protesters.

Besides that, we don't need to sell to South Korea because there isn't any beef rotting on the docks.

Also, you shouldn't be able to sell tested beef to Korea because she thinks their demands are unreasonble. It's much better for them to buy Aussie beef instead of tested US. We're all better in the long run. Oh, yeah, since all of our products have to be based on sound science, you need to get out of CAB, because they are insunuating that their beef is better than any other, and they have no science to back that.

Hail, hail NCBA.
 

Cinch

Well-known member
There is nothing more dangerous to the market than customers who insist they are right!

Restrain the boogers and cram the meat down their throats. That will show them how kind America is.

And just to show them who is boss, America will eat the loss of exports just to prove itself right. Who cares what the cost may be. It's not like the government is laying out actual money for it. It's hardly costing the government a dime.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
A drop in cattle prices is attributed to sluggish consumption in the wake of the mad cow scare, sparked by the ongoing controversy surrounding U.S. beef imports,''

A growing number of consumers have turned to pork and chicken, pushing up poultry prices in recent months.

Livestock raisers have begun breeding more pigs in recent months on rising consumption as more households choose pork as an alternative to beef.

Yep- when you don't give consumers what they want- they go to another product that they do want...
We can thank NCBA/USDA/AMI/etal for switching Koreans from being beef eaters to being pork and chicken eaters...
ATTA BOY- NCBA - Keep up the good work for your Big Packer buddies as you stab producers in the back ......
:( :( :mad: :mad:



Beef Consumption Falls on Mad Cow Controversy



By Lee Hyo-sik

Staff Reporter

The Korea Times

07-08-2008 18:42



Farmers are choosing to keep a larger number of ``hanwoo,'' Korea's domestic cattle, at home rather than sell them on the market amid falling prices as more consumers become reluctant to eat beef in the wake of the mad cow disease controversy.



Public concerns over the disease were sparked by a series of candlelit protests against the resumption of U.S. beef imports. A growing number of consumers have turned to pork and chicken, pushing up poultry prices in recent months.


According to the National Statistical Office (NSO) Tuesday, the number of hanwoo reached 2.25 million head nationwide as of the end of June, up 12.3 percent from a year earlier. It is also up 9.2 percent from three months ago.



Including other types of cattle raised here, the total number increased 9.2 percent to 2.45 million head from a year ago. The number of milk cows declined 2.4 percent to 445,000.



The number of farms breeding cattle fell 0.5 percent over the one-year period, but each livestock farmer raised an average of 12.9 cattle, up from 11.4 a year ago. The price of a bull hanwoo weighing 600kg has dropped to 3.67 million won in June from 4.76 million won late last year.



``The number of hanwoo and other types of cattle at farmhouses have increased as many farmers do not want to put them on sale because of falling prices. A drop in cattle prices is attributed to sluggish consumption in the wake of the mad cow scare, sparked by the ongoing controversy surrounding U.S. beef imports,'' an NSO official said.



He said stagnant consumption is the main culprit behind a rise in the number of hanwoo held by farmers.



Livestock raisers have begun breeding more pigs in recent months on rising consumption as more households choose pork as an alternative to beef.



The number raised in the country totaled 9.15 million last month, up 1.9 percent from March. The price of a pig weighing 100 kg rose to 303,000 won, up from 197,000 won in December.



The number of chickens bred for eggs rose 3.2 percent to 59.7 million in June from three months ago, while chickens raised for meat stood at 77.8 million, up 16.2 percent over the three month period as consumption rose on the subsiding avian influenza.



The wholesale price for an egg increased to 101 won from 96.5 won last December, while the price of chicken per kg fell to 1,237 won from 1,405 won.



koreatimes.co.kr
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Heres another one praising the good work of NCBA in how they've been able to give away our Asian markets- by backslapping the Big Multinationals and their Lobbyist owned USDA- and not letting Creekstone/etal provide the customers what they want...

Keep up the good work NCBA
:wink: :( :mad:

Australian Beef Exports To SE Asia, China, Hong Kong Jump-MLA



Agriculture Online

1:57 AM, July 10, 2008



CANBERRA (Dow Jones)--Australian beef exports to Southeast Asia, China and

Hong Kong grew 32% on year to 85,425 boneless metric tons during the fiscal

year ended June 30, the highest volume in the past nine years, marketing

concern Meat & Livestock Australia Ltd. reported Thursday.




"Stronger exports to the region were largely driven by growing demand in the

retail and food service sectors in Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore,

particularly in the fast food segments," it said in a brief statement.



Beef shipments to Indonesia jumped 64% on year to a record 31,743 tons,

boosted by a 72% on-year surge in manufacturing beef volume to 17,616 tons, it

said.



Higher Brazilian beef prices led to a rise in orders for Australian product

from Indonesia and the Philippines, the majority of which was used in meat

balls, sausages and corned beef production, MLA said.



After Brazil, Australia is the second-biggest global exporter of beef in a

trade worth around A$4.5 billion.




Exports to the Philippines more than doubled to 7,746 tons, with the volume

of manufacturing beef jumping nearly fourfold to 7,051 tons, accounting for 91%

of the total, it said.



Australian beef exports to Singapore almost doubled on year to a record 8,027

tons, with neck shipments more than doubling, it said.



Beef exports to minor regional markets also rose during the year. Shipments

to China jumped 66%, to Hong Kong 61%, to Malaysia 54%, to Thailand 11% and to

Vietnam 39%, it said.



However, the volume of exports to Taiwan fell 14% on year to 26,281 tons,

reflecting smaller shipments of Australian shin, shank and knuckles, it said.





-By Ray Brindal, Dow Jones Newswires

agriculture.com
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Three S. Korean ministers sacked for U.S. beef deal

(MEATPOULTRY.com, July 07, 2008)
by Bryan Salvage

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------





Related stories
S. Korean president urges end to U.S. beef dispute
(MEATPOULTRY.com, July 03, 2008)

U.S. beef issue sparks S. Korean auto strike
(MEATPOULTRY.com, July 02, 2008)

South Korea beef protest injures hundreds
(MEATPOULTRY.com, June 30, 2008)


SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — Three ministers were replaced by South Korean president Lee Myung-bak on July 7 in the ongoing fallout from a much-criticized U.S. beef import agreement, but he left his Cabinet largely intact despite their offer to resign to stem weeks of anti-government protests, according to The Associated Press.
Since April 2008 when the U.S. beef import agreement was made, President Lee has been under increasingly intense fire over the agreement as well as the timing of the deal. Almost daily street protests have been staged over perceptions the country could be exposed to bovine spongiform encephalopathy, and the demonstrations have since grown to include opponents of the conservative President Lee's pro-business policies.

This most-recent government shakeup was aimed at "making a new start" while giving other Cabinet members another chance, said presidential spokesman Lee Dong-kwan.

President Lee chose new agriculture and welfare ministers on July 7 because of the mishandling of the beef agreement, while the education minister was replaced over alleged financial wrongdoing.

The street protests forced Seoul to negotiate an amendment to the import agreement last month to limit shipments to beef from cattle younger than 30 months, believed less susceptible to B.S.E. Desite this concession, S. Korean critics want a complete renegotiation of the import agreement, saying even more safeguards are needed.

Although President Lee has publicly apologized over the beef issue and replaced top advisers, it remains unclear whether his latest response will help quell lingering public concerns over the safety of U.S. beef and satisfy the protesters. The main opposition Democratic Party, which has been supportive of the protests that have been spearheaded by left-wing grass roots groups, said the Cabinet reshuffle falls short of what the people want.

The new Cabinet nominees must go through parliamentary confirmation hearings, but it remains unclear when the hearings will occur because the Democratic Party is boycotting the National Assembly over the beef deal. However, the legislature does not have the power to block the president's appointments
 

Sandhusker

Well-known member
He must not of gotten the NCBA email that explained the protesters were simply paid.... :roll:

And to think that this could of been soooo easily avoided long ago with a little more common sense and a little less packer kissing.

Nice job, NCBA, all this has been very condusive to beef sales. :clap:
 
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