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(2nd LD) S. Korea starts quarantine inspections of US beef
By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, June 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korea has started quarantine inspections of U.S. beef after lifting its import ban earlier in the day, the government said on Thursday.
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said inspectors have started to screen frozen U.S. beef packages with X-ray machines to check for unauthorized materials.
"The measures are being taken in anticipation that importers may request inspections all at once, which could make it hard for inspectors to carry out their duties properly," a ministry statement said.
However, it said that no local importers have requested that quarantine authorities check their packages.
Authorities said that while intestines and bone-in beef like ribs, backbones can be imported under the updated rules, shipments sent in the past and the 7,000 tons of beef currently held in Long Beach, California in the wake of last year's ban will be sent back or destroyed if such parts are discovered.
They said this is because even under the new rules, South Korea has the right to send back beef packages whose contents differ from the export label.
After delaying the implementation of the revised import rules twice, Seoul posted the new sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards on the government gazette earlier in the day, completing the administrative process to resume imports. The move was made amid lingering concerns on the safety of U.S. beef, while the number of street protesters has flared up again.
With the start of inspections, 5,300 tons of frozen U.S. beef that has been held in cold storage since early October will be checked first. If there are no mishaps, they will clear quarantine in three to four days and hit the market next week. The packages were brought in last year, when South Korea allowed boneless beef from cattle under 30 months to be imported.
On the arrival of new meat processed to satisfy revised import rules, a ministry official said that it will take some time before the first shipments actually reach the country.
"It takes about two weeks for meat packers to set guidelines for beef cuts that can be exported to South Korea under the age-verification quality system assessment (QSA) program," said Kim Chang-seob, head of the ministry's animal health division.
He added that because it takes about 15 days for ships to deliver goods, it could take up to a month before consumers can buy U.S. beef ribs, T-bone steaks and intestines.
South Korea banned imports of U.S. beef in late 2003 following a confirmed case of mad cow disease in the U.S. It eased the ban last year before halting imports last October after two packages of backbones were found in shipments. Under the old SPS rules, backbones were banned.
Under a new SPS deal reached on April 18, Seoul agreed to import most beef cuts regardless of the age of the animals slaughtered to provide the meat. This, however, sparked daily rallies and street marches that compelled the Lee Myung-bak administration to hold two additional talks with Washington, resulting in a deal preventing beef from cattle over 30 months from being imported. Meat from older cattle has a higher risk of transmitting mad cow disease to humans.
Public concerns, however, are still running high over U.S. beef, despite the government's assurances that the new trade terms with Washington sufficiently guarantee its safety.
Many activists and civic groups are vowing to continue their protests against the deal, demanding renegotiations.
Before South Korea banned U.S. beef in 2003, it was one of the three top importers of the product, along with Japan and Mexico. In that year, it brought in 290,000 tons of beef from abroad, with 200,000 coming from the U.S.
In 2007, beef imports reached 260,000 tons, while an addition 170,000 tons of domestically raised beef was sold on the market.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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