Most S. Korean housewives wary of U.S. beef: poll
SEOUL, Jan 24, 2008 (Asia Pulse Data Source via COMTEX) --
Most South Korean housewives are concerned about the safety of U.S. beef as bone chips and banned parts have repeatedly been found in shipments entering the country, a survey conducted by a state-run agricultural think tank said Wednesday.
According to the survey among 727 homemakers in major cities across the country, 35.6 percent of the respondents said U.S. beef was "very unsafe" for consumption and 49.9 percent said it was "unsafe", the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI).
It said 85.5 percent considered American beef unsafe, with only 1.5 percent saying it is safe to eat and the rest of the respondents not expressing an opinion.
The KREI's findings also said most South Korean housewives would consider buying American beef if it was roughly 10 percent cheaper than Australian beef, which currently in the best-selling imported beef in the country.
The poll, however, said housewives were willing to buy South Korean "hanwoo" meat even if it cost 10,000 won more than Australian beef because of better taste and few health concerns.
Seoul banned U.S. beef in late 2003 after the confirmation of a case of mad cow disease on an American ranch. The sickness, also called bovine spongiform encephalopathy, may lead to the fatal Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans.
South Korea agreed to lift the ban in January 2006 and resumed imports in late April of last year but all imports were effectively halted on Oct. 5 after the discovery of a package of backbones, which are banned as "specified risk materials."
Seoul and Washington held talks in October to set new import guidelines that would allow imports of bone-in beef like ribs, but made little headway.
From April to October, South Korea imported roughly 13,000 tons of beef from the United States.
******************************************************
My guess would be that they feel this way because the USDA did not allow BSE testing of all animals for export and they think we are hiding BSE.
Arguments?