South Korea To U.S. Beef Industry: Change Your Processing Procedures
South Korea is suggesting that the United States change its meat-processing procedures if it wants to resume business in the Korean market. Park Hyun-chool, head of the Agriculture Ministry's livestock bureau, said in a radio interview in Seoul yesterday that U.S. processors should run more than a single slaughter line to separate U.S. and Canadian cattle, as well as cattle under and over 30 months of age.
"The U.S. does not consider the concerns voiced as being a problem, but from our view they are," Park said, as reported by Yonhap News Agency.
Park also suggested that different equipment be used to slaughter older cattle in order to lower the risk of potential cross-contamination from older animals, which are at higher risk for bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
However, Park said that he was not worried about reports of animal protein found in a few samples of cattle feed, saying the incidence was too low to pose a significant threat to animal and human health.