South Korea blocks beef from U.S.
6/4/2007 8:45:58 AM
Associated Press
SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea slapped a de facto ban on imports of U.S. beef today after recent shipments were found to have been intended for domestic consumption, not for export, the Agriculture Ministry said.
South Korea decided not to issue quarantine certificates for any U.S. beef until Washington provides an adequate explanation of why two recent shipments intended for domestic consumption were sent to South Korea and comes up with measures to prevent it from happening again, said Kim Do-soon, a ministry official.
South Korea asked Washington last week for an explanation after banned rib bones were found in two boxes of a 15.2-ton shipment from Cargill, a major beef producer, and suspended imports from the facility that processed the meat.
Washington sent a response Friday, saying the Cargill Inc. shipment and another recent 51.2-ton shipment from Tyson Foods Inc., another beef producer, were actually intended for domestic consumption, not for export, the ministry said in a statement.
South Korea, which had banned imports of American beef for three years since 2003 over mad cow fears, partially reopened its market last year, agreeing to import boneless meat from cattle younger than 30 months -- thought to be less at risk of carrying the illness.
"We decided to suspend issuing quarantine certificates until the U.S. explains why this has happened and comes up with a reliable measure to prevent it," said Kim, the ministry official.
Without a quarantine certificate, no imported meat can pass customs inspection.
The incident is expected to have a negative effect on U.S. efforts to get South Korea to open its beef market wider.
Although beef is not part of a recent free-trade agreement between the countries, Washington has demanded greater access to South Korea's beef market to help muster support for the pact, which still requires legislative approval.
South Korea announced late last month that it would hold talks with the United States about further easing its restrictions on imports of American beef and conduct a risk assessment of the meat in a possible step toward resuming imports of beef attached to bone.
The announcement followed a recent ruling by the World Organization for Animal Health that the United States was a "controlled risk nation," a category that means countries can export beef irrespective of the animal's age.
Washington seized on the announcement as proof that U.S. beef is safe.
The U.S. has been urging South Korea to further open its market, the third-largest U.S. beef destination after Japan and Mexico before the ban. In 2003 alone, South Korea bought about $813.2 million worth of American beef, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation.
6/4/2007 8:45:58 AM
Associated Press
SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea slapped a de facto ban on imports of U.S. beef today after recent shipments were found to have been intended for domestic consumption, not for export, the Agriculture Ministry said.
South Korea decided not to issue quarantine certificates for any U.S. beef until Washington provides an adequate explanation of why two recent shipments intended for domestic consumption were sent to South Korea and comes up with measures to prevent it from happening again, said Kim Do-soon, a ministry official.
South Korea asked Washington last week for an explanation after banned rib bones were found in two boxes of a 15.2-ton shipment from Cargill, a major beef producer, and suspended imports from the facility that processed the meat.
Washington sent a response Friday, saying the Cargill Inc. shipment and another recent 51.2-ton shipment from Tyson Foods Inc., another beef producer, were actually intended for domestic consumption, not for export, the ministry said in a statement.
South Korea, which had banned imports of American beef for three years since 2003 over mad cow fears, partially reopened its market last year, agreeing to import boneless meat from cattle younger than 30 months -- thought to be less at risk of carrying the illness.
"We decided to suspend issuing quarantine certificates until the U.S. explains why this has happened and comes up with a reliable measure to prevent it," said Kim, the ministry official.
Without a quarantine certificate, no imported meat can pass customs inspection.
The incident is expected to have a negative effect on U.S. efforts to get South Korea to open its beef market wider.
Although beef is not part of a recent free-trade agreement between the countries, Washington has demanded greater access to South Korea's beef market to help muster support for the pact, which still requires legislative approval.
South Korea announced late last month that it would hold talks with the United States about further easing its restrictions on imports of American beef and conduct a risk assessment of the meat in a possible step toward resuming imports of beef attached to bone.
The announcement followed a recent ruling by the World Organization for Animal Health that the United States was a "controlled risk nation," a category that means countries can export beef irrespective of the animal's age.
Washington seized on the announcement as proof that U.S. beef is safe.
The U.S. has been urging South Korea to further open its market, the third-largest U.S. beef destination after Japan and Mexico before the ban. In 2003 alone, South Korea bought about $813.2 million worth of American beef, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation.