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Food News Clipping

February 2010

2010.03.05

 
 
 

 

Korea needs to prepare for a scenario where the KORUS FTA will be discarded [Korean: BYK]

http://www.todaykorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=96723

 

Summary: Assemblyman, Jung Ok Hong of the ruling Grand National Party who sits on the Diplomatic, Trade and Unification Committee of the National Assembly stated in an interview with Today Korea that as it does not seem likely that the KORUS FTA will be ratified in the United States this year, due to the mid-term elections and economic problems, Korea needs to prepare for a scenario where the KORUS FTA may be discarded.  He said that the Korean government will do its best to get this ratified but felt that the likelihood of the agreement being ratified in the United States was slim and that is why Korea should be prepared for the worst scenario.

 

S. Korea, U.S. biz leaders urge for early ratification of Korea-U.S. FTA [English: CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/02/07/21/0502000000AEN

20100207001700320F.HTML

Summary: A major South Korean business lobby said Sunday it has convened a meeting in Los Angeles with U.S. business leaders to push for the prompt ratification of a Seoul-Washington free trade deal.  At the meeting on Saturday, business leaders from the two countries welcomed U.S. President Barack Obama's pledge, made in his first State of Union speech, to enhance trade with South Korea and other countries to help support the economic recovery, according to the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI).

 

S. Korea, Germany agree to bolster ties on FTA, global issues [English: CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/02/08/0503000000AEN

20100208003700315.HTML

Summary: South Korea and Germany agreed Monday to expand economic ties, bolster partnership on global issues and pursue further discussions on Germany's experience of reunification, South Korea's presidential office said after a summit between the leaders of the two sides.

President Lee Myung-bak and his counterpart Horst Kohler also had "in-depth" discussions on ways to boost cooperation at the G-20 economic forum and facilitate the implementation of the free trade agreement between Seoul and the European Union, according to Cheong Wa Dae.  Lee emphasized "the importance of deepening and expanding economic and trade cooperation with Germany, South Korea's largest trading partner in Europe," Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.

 

Korea should accede if the United States requests for additional discussions on KORUS FTA [Korean: BYK]

http://www.ytn.co.kr/_ln/0101_201002170153110541

Summary: Korean Ambassador to the United States, Duk Soo Han, stated that he expects the United States to make a request to Korea for additional discussions on KORUS FTA sooner or later and if this happens, Korea should accede to such discussions.  Ambassador Han made such comments in a talk show called ¡°YTN Focus¡± to be aired today.  However, he added that the result of the discussions between the United States and Korea should be one that can be accepted by both countries and should not be one that shakes up the overall shape.

 

Korea , EU agree to a new FTA tariff timeline [English: CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2916510

Summary: Tariffs between Korea and the European Union will be phased out over a period of three to five years instead of the originally agreed upon timeline of two to four years when the countries¡¯ free trade agreement comes to fruition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said yesterday.

The decision to delay the elimination of tariffs comes after the two sides tentatively agreed to a free trade deal last October. They plan to officially sign the FTA in April, and the ministry reaffirmed yesterday that they would implement the deal at some point this year.  The change in the tariff timeline will affect all goods traded between the two regions.

 

Korea and Turkey to begin FTA negotiations next month. [Korean: BYK]

http://economy.hankooki.com/lpage/economy/201002/e2010021516410969890.htm

Summary: According to MOFAT, Korea will launch FTA negotiations with Turkey in March.  As a preparatory measure, it will hold an open hearing on Feb. 19th

 

Obama to press for Korea FTA approval [English: CSY]

¡®We have to seek new markets aggressively, just as our competitors are.¡¯

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2916597

Summary: U.S. President Barack Obama said yesterday that he will push for congressional approval of the pending free trade agreement with Korea this year to help create jobs through export growth.  In an interview with Bloomberg BusinessWeek, posted on its Web site, Obama said he ¡°would press for passage this year of free-trade agreements with Korea, Panama and Colombia.¡±

Obama, however, cautioned that ¡°different glitches¡± must first be addressed with each country, according to the magazine. The U.S. president was apparently referring to the imbalance in auto trade and the restricted shipments of U.S. beef to Korea, the biggest hurdle to the early ratification of the Korea FTA, signed in 2007. U.S. officials have said they want to address those concerns in side agreements without revising the text of the deal.

 

Deputy USTR Demetrios Marantis calls for additional talks on automobile and beef [Korean: BYK]

http://mbn.mk.co.kr/news/newsRead.php?vodCode=489300&category=mbn00003

Summary: Deputy USTR Demetrios Marantis restated the need for additional progress in the automobile and beef sector in order to get the KORUS FTA ratified.  He made such comments at a speech that he gave at George Town University.

 

Seoul to lead study on East Asia FTA [English: BYK]

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2010/02/26/201002260059.asp

Summary: The government said yesterday Korea would take the initiative in discussions on integrating the East Asian economies and push for a trilateral free trade agreement between Korea, China and Japan.  The three nations will have the first meeting of business executives, government officials and academics to set the schedule for a trilateral FTA this year. But this will not take a short time," Vice Finance Minister Hur Kyung-wook told reporters in Gwacheon. Hur attended a weekly economic policy meeting in Seoul earlier in the day.  The meeting, chaired by President Lee Myung-bak, discussed the economic issues of the president's summit diplomacy in the past two years and future plans. Lee marked the second anniversary of his office yesterday.  "The government has commissioned a report to a think tank to analyze the merits and demerits of a trilateral FTA among the three Eastern nations," Hur said.

 


2. Biotechnology Issues

None

 
3. Economic Issues

 

Korea¡¯s Ag. Trade Deficit Shrinks 12 Percent [Korean, OSY] http://kr.news.yahoo.com/service/news/shellview.htm?articleid=

2010020503000019610&linkid=4&newssetid=1352

Summary: According to aT, Korea¡¯s trade deficit from agricultural products declined 12 percent in 2009 compared to the previous year.  While Korea exported a total of $4.9 billion of agricultural products to the world, up 7 percent from the previous year, imports totaled at $16.4 billion, down 8.4 percent from the previous year.  Trading partners that Korea recorded the largest ag. trade deficit were the U.S. ($4.1 billion), China ($3.1 billion) and Australia ($1.7 billion).  Top imported ag. products were corn ($1.6 billion), pulp ($1.2 billion) and wheat ($1 billion).

 

4. Grain/Oilseed Issues

 

State farm trade corporation aims to set up int'l grain company [English: CSY] http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/02/10/30/0501000000AEN

20100210011000320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea's state-run agriculture trading corporation said Thursday that it aims to set up an international grain purchasing and distribution company that can better insulate the country from fallout from global price hikes.

The plan calls for the new grain handling company to set up an international distribution network in the next 10 years, officials at the Korea Agro-Fisheries Trade Corp. said. This it said would allow it to purchase products directly from farmers in foreign countries and distribute wheat, corn and beans around the world.

 

5. Livestock Issues

 

6th Foot-and-Mouth Disease Case Confirmed [English: CSY]

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2010/02/123_60015.html

Summary: South Korea confirmed a fresh outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) Saturday, renewing fears that the highly contagious disease has not subsided after more than 10 days with no new cases.  The latest outbreak brings the total number of cases to six since the first FMD outbreak was reported on Jan. 7.

The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said the sixth case was at a farm located in Pocheon, north of Seoul, about 4 kilometers away from where the first outbreak was confirmed. Of the six cases that were confirmed in the past three weeks, five occurred in the Pocheon region, while one other case was reported in nearby Yeoncheon, 62 kilometers north of Seoul.

 

USMEF Launches US Beef Gift Sets for Lunar New Year¡¯s Day [Korean, OSY]

http://kr.finance.yahoo.com/news/view?aid=2010020416540866847&cate=3000

Summary: According to USMEF major hypermarket stores and five star hotels have started to sell US beef gift sets targeting Lunar New Year¡¯s Day from February 4.  While hypermarket stores are focusing on gift sets of frozen meat and rib, five start hotels offer more expensive sets of chilled meat.

 

NGO releases list of 704 places that violated the COO regulations [Korean: BYK]

http://www.nongmin.com/article/ar_detail.htm?ar_id=171137&subMenu=articletotal

Summary: The Coalition of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society released a list of 704 places that had sold U.S. beef under a different country-of-origin labeling.  The Coalition received this list after winning the law suit against MIFAFF for not releasing this information.  Among the places included in this list were; restaurants, kindergarten, day-care centers, wedding halls, hotels, resorts, golf clubs and hospitals.  Among the 704 places caught during the first 10 months after the U.S. beef was liberalized on June 26, 2008, 63 places had fake COO labels indicating that the beef was Hanwoo.

 

Prime Minister leaves room for renegotiation of U.S> beef import protocol¡¦.after observing neighborhood country¡¯s protocol [Korean: BYK]

http://www.seoulfn.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=77105

Summary: Prime Minister made such comments on February 5th while answering the questions from the National Assemblymen about the Foreign Affairs, Unification and Security area.  He did point out that the revision of the Taiwanese law was a unilateral action by Taiwan without consulting with the United States.  However, he said that the ROKG will keep a close monitoring of the developments being made in neighborhood nations and will make the necessary demands, including a revision of the import protocol, if the agreement with other nations are more favorable than the one reached with Korea.

 

USMEF to promote gift beef sets for upcoming Lunar New Year [Korean: BYK]

http://economy.hankooki.com/lpage/industry/201002/e2010020417284947670.htm

Summary: USMEF will be promoting U.S. beef gift sets for the upcoming Lunar New Year holidays at major discount stores, hotels, etc.  Each imported U.S. imported beef sets will be prices within a range of 60,000~330,000 won.

 

Gov't urges S. Koreans abroad to stay away from farms, bird sanctuaries [English: CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/02/10/85/0501000000AEN

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Summary: The government on Wednesday urged South Koreans traveling abroad not to visit farms or bird sanctuaries in an effort to prevent further outbreaks of livestock diseases in the country. The farm ministry said a recent outbreak of foot-and-mount (FMD) disease in Beijing and bird flu cases in Vietnam and other parts of Southeast Asia has raised the possibility of such diseases entering the country via returning travelers or foreign visitors.

 

Court makes decision in favor of the PD Diary again [Korean: BYK]

http://www.vop.co.kr/A00000281934.html

Summary: The court handed down a decision in favor of the producers of the PD Diary again.  The court determined against the law suit filed by the importers claiming that they had lost money due to the program.  The court also turned down the law suit against the Actress that had said bad things about U.S. beef.

 

U.S. Meat Packer Conducts Massive Recall [Korean: BYK] http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=

104&oid=003&aid=0003090442

Summary: Huntington Meat Packing Inc., a Montebello, Calif. establishment, is recalling approximately 864,000 pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.  (This plant is not on the EV list for Korea)

 

Import Trends of Consumer Goods Indicate Further Dipolization of Consumer Buying Power [Korean, OSY] http://kr.news.yahoo.com/service/news/shellview.htm?articleid=

2010021603000072410&linkid=4&newssetid=1352

Summary: According to the gov¡¯t import data, imports of luxury consumer goods, such as jewelries and hand bags, showed a hefty increase (178 percent and 61 percent respectively) in January compared to the same month of last year.  Other high value consumer goods, including cars, furs, golf gear, whiskies and cosmetics also showed a robust double digit import growth.  However, as indicated by the sluggish sales reported by leading discount store chains for January (-11.9 percent), low income consumer group is still under the financial difficulty and the market is becoming more dipolized in terms of buying power, which presents a challenge to the policy makers.

 

6. Marketing Issues

 

Lotte Acquires GS Department & Hypermarket Store [Korean, OSY]

http://news.joins.com/article/437/4006437.html?ctg=1100&cloc=home|list|list1

Summary: Lotte Group announced on February 9 acquisition of GS Squre department stores (3 outlets) and GS Mart hypermarket stores (14 outlets) from GS Group at 1.34 trillion won.  Total number of department stores and hypermarket stores under Lotte will become 29 and 84 after the acquisition.  A series of acquisition deals recently completed by Lotte, including Buy The Way convenience store chain earlier this year, indicates that Lotte will seek additional expansion opportunities in the retail sector.

 

Michelin Guide Korea Edition to be Published [Korean, OSY]

http://news.donga.com/Economy/New/3/01/20100225/26425495/1&top=1

Summary: The head of Korea Tourism Agency met with the representative of Michelin Guide and agreed to work together to publish Michelin Guide Korean Edition.  Launching of the Korean version Michelin Guide is likely to help upgrade the quality of food and service of local restaurant industry while helping foreign travelers better understand the Korean cuisine and culture.

 

7. North Korea Issues

Food shortage worsens in N. Korea: official [English: CSY] http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/northkorea/2010/02/10/21/0401000000AEN

20100210001700315F.HTML

Summary: North Korea's food shortage is expected to further worsen this year, as the communist state's grain output in 2009 is believed to have fallen from the previous year, a government official in Seoul said Wednesday. The North is estimated to have produced 4.1 million tons of grain last year, a drop of about 200,000 tons compared to 2008, the Unification Ministry official said on condition of anonymity. The amount falls about 1.3 million tons short of what the impoverished country needs this year to feed its 24 million people, the official said. The North produced 4.3 million tons in 2008.

 

DPRK reportedly succeeded in inviting foreign investment worth 10 billion dollars from China. (Korean:CSC) 

http://www.dailynk.com/korean/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=81112

 

8. Other/Miscellaneous Issues

 

 

Food producers cut prices for flour-based brands [English: CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2916123

Summary: Good news for gluttons: Prices for some popular food items such as ramen, pie and crackers are on the decline.  Several companies are slashing prices on these items by up to 14 percent as the result of a dip in flour prices and several other factors.  Nongshim Co., the biggest ramen producer in Korea, said yesterday it would cut the prices of seven ramen products - including its popular Shin Ramyun and Ansungtangmyun brands - by 2.7 percent to 7.1 percent, effective as of today.

 

Gov't to increase farm product inspections in 2010 [English: CSY] http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/02/02/0501000000AEN

20100202008400320.HTML

Summary: The government said Wednesday that it will expand the scope of its inspections on farm goods to better safeguard public health against harmful residual materials.  The measures to be implemented this year call for a 13 percent increase in the number of products to be checked, with emphasis placed on 54 types of grains, vegetables and fruits that are consumed in large quantities on a regular basis, the farm ministry said.

 

Beer Imports Increase 19 Times in 10 Years [Korean, OSY]

http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/02/03/2010020300296.html

Summary: Total value of beer imports was $37 million dollars in 2009, down 5.6 percent from the year before due to the global economic depression but 19 times larger than 10 years ago.  It is expected that beer imports will see a strong growth in the coming years as consumers want more options and new tastes.  Netherland was the leading exporter of beer to Korea in 2009 with 24.4% market share followed by Japan (21.2%) and the U.S. (17%).

 

Gov¡¯t to Help Expand Rice Wine Industry [Korean, OSY] http://kr.news.yahoo.com/service/news/shellview.htm?articleid=

2010021103000023710&linkid=4&newssetid=1352

Summary: According to the Ministry of Ag. and National Tax Office, government will deploy various supports to the local rice wine industry this year.  Gov¡¯t supports will include 50 percent reduction of liquor tax, launching of government certified quality assurance program and financial support for facility modernization.  Gov¡¯t believes that these efforts will result in increased use of local rice by the industry which currently relies heavily on imported rice.

 

Daewoo International eyes farming business [English: CSY]

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2010/02/11/201002110066.asp

Summary: Daewoo International Corp., a trading firm focused on overseas resource development, said yesterday it will stretch its business to agricultural resource development to seek growth and help reduce Korea's reliance on imported grain.  The trading company has established a new unit to focus on development of food resources like corn and beans, biofuel assets like palm oil and cassava, and reforestation projects, it said.

 

Korean 'makgeolli' rice wine exports surge in 2009 [English: CSY] http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/02/11/8/0501000000AEN

20100211001600320F.HTML

Summary: Exports of traditional Korean rice wine surged 41.9 percent on-year in 2009 due to steady overseas demand for the beverage, a government report said Thursday.  Outbound shipments of the "makgeolli" wine reached a record US$6.30 million the finance ministry said. It added the rise made the alcoholic beverage the fastest growing export item among local agricultural and food products last year. Makgeolli exports grew 16.0 percent in 2007 and shot up to 52.2 percent in 2008 thanks to strong consumer demand in Japan, although in terms of total volume makgeolli exports stood at just 20 percent of those of soju, a distilled drink made from rice and starches such as sweet potato.

 

Sugar rice to increase after the New Year¡¯s holiday [Korean: CSY]

http://polinews.co.kr/viewnews.html?PageKey=0401&num=99634

Summary: Local sugar refiners will increase its sugar price after the New Year¡¯s holidays due to the surged raw sugar price in the global market. The refined sugar price increase is expected to give an impact on the prices of sugar contained food products in Korea.

 

Fish quotas unchanged [English: CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2916636

Summary: Korea and Japan have agreed to keep their quotas on the amount of fish allowed to be caught in their respective exclusive economic zones unchanged for this year, government officials said yesterday.  The agreement to leave the amount at 60,000 tons this year was made between officials of the two countries in a meeting held last week in Seoul, according to the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The number of Korean ships permitted to fish in Japanese waters annually was reduced from 940 to 900 for this year. The same quotas should be applied to Japanese ships in Korean waters, the ministry said.

 

KOICA at forefront of overseas aid campaign [English: BYK]

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2010/02/26/201002260043.asp

Summary: Korea, once a recipient of international aid itself, is on a campaign to increase the volume of its official development assistance following its recent induction into a club of top global donors.  Seoul now holds membership in the OECD's Development Assistance Committee, meaning it is under stronger international obligations on aid extension.  On committee recommendations, the Korea International Cooperation Agency - the government's main arm for extending official development assistance - has already inflated its annual budget by 20 percent for this year.  Interest-free grants are to account for the bulk of the funds, agency officials said.  Seoul's goals regarding overseas aid involves mainly two goals; one is to raise the overall contribution level, while the other is to extend more grants than loans.

 
 
The information in this report was compiled by the Agricultural Trade Office(ATO) at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea.  U.S. food exporters can learn more about market opportunities in South Korea by reviewing ATO Seoul¡¯s Exporter Guide, Retail Food Sector Brief, and other reports available at www.fas.usda.gov by clicking on ¡°attache reports¡±.
 
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Agricultural Trade Office, U.S. Embassy - Seoul
Tel: 82-2-6951-6848 Fax: 82-2-720-7921
Email: atoseoul@state.gov