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Food News Clipping

February 15, 2011

2011.02.15

FAS/Seoul Monitoring of Media Reporting on Agricultural Issues
Today's Date:  Tuesday February 15, 2011
For Coverage:  February 14 - 15, 2011
 
 
1. BILATERAL/MULTILATERAL ISSUES
 

Democratic Party Refutes Ruling Party¡¯s Statement on KORUS FTA [Korean: BYK]

http://www.asiatoday.co.kr/news/view.asp?seq=449322

Summary: The Head of the Democratic Party, Hak Gyu Sohn refuted the statement by Kyung Pil Nam of the Grand National Party who had stated that Sohn¡¯s position on KORUS FTA had changed after he joined the Democratic Party.  Sohn¡¯s colleague stated that Sohn¡¯s position had changed after the current Administration held additional negotiations with the United States which broke the balanced agreement that the previous administration had agreed upon.

 
2. GRAIN AND OILSEED ISSUES 
 

Possible Crisis in the International Wheat Supply as China Likely to Double Its Wheat Import This Year [Korean, OSY]

http://www.hankyung.com/news/app/newsview.php?aid=2011021454461&sid=0101&nid=002<ype=1

Summary: South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on Feb. 14 that China is expected to import a total of 3 million tons of wheat this year, twice the amount it imported last year, due to a severe drought in its major wheat growing areas.  Price of wheat in the international market, which had already risen 14 percent from last year, took a steeper rise since the FAO report on Feb. 8 about the drought condition in China.
 
3. LIVESTOCK ISSUES
 

Gov¡¯t goes on high alert over FMD contamination [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932220

Summary: As the public becomes increasingly alarmed over the environmental impact of the mass culling of animals due to foot-and-mouth disease, the government yesterday issued new measures to contain the damage by assigning civil servants to each disposal site for daily inspections.  Following reports of water and soil contamination at the disposal sites of culled animals, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said yesterday that it has issued new guidelines to regional governments to survey the sites daily.  Under the new measures, public servants will be assigned to each site for daily inspection and for managing the sites to prevent water and soil contamination. Deputy mayors and governors will be in charge of the sites near drinking water sources or those found to be vulnerable to leaks.

 

Disgust over FMD gives boost to vegetarianism [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932212

Summary: As worries about foot-and-mouth disease spread, vegetarianism is enjoying new popularity, changing Korea¡¯s negative image of vegetarians as people who are overly picky or obsessed with health.  This trend was obvious at the cafeteria in the Seoul National University Music Department on the afternoon of Feb. 7. The cafeteria serves a vegetarian buffet with main dishes made of grains and vegetables. The menu included Korean corn pancakes, a mushroom and red pepper stir-fry, and rice cake soup. The soup was brewed with mushroom, instead of the conventional beef. There was no meat offered.  There are 50 vegetarian restaurants operating in Seoul. As more people turn to vegetarianism, some go to group meetings and share tips on vegetarian recipes. Vegetarian clubs are already operating at Seoul National, Sogang and Hanyang universities. They usually have meetings at vegetarian restaurants near the schools and run seminars on vegetarianism.

 

S. Korea plans to form FMD task force [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/14/0501000000AEN20110214009400320.HTML

Summary: South Korea will set up a task force to develop new foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) countermeasures to protect the country from future outbreaks, the farm ministry said Monday.  The move comes as the country is grappling with the severest outbreak of the disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals. The disease has spread to six provinces and three major cities since the first case was confirmed on Nov. 29, forcing authorities to cull a record 3.31 million heads of cattle, pigs, goats and deer.

 

<2/11/2011>Seoul to expand tariff quota on pork, powdered milk for price stability [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/11/48/0502000000AEN20110211009600320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea will expand the amount of imported pork and powdered milk subject to its tariff quota system in the latest move to help lower food prices and ease inflationary pressure, a senior finance ministry official said Friday.   "We will expand the amount of imported pork and powered milk subject to the tariff quota system in order to remove market anxiety caused by recent price instability," Vice Finance Minister Yim Jong-yong said at a meeting with senior economic policymakers.  A tariff quota is a quantitative threshold on imports, above which a higher tariff is applied. The lower tariff rate applies to imports within the quota, allowing policymakers to adjust duties on specified merchandise to help control inflationary pressure.  Last month, a tariff quota was imposed on a total of 60,000 tons of pork, cutting import taxes from 25 percent to zero until June.
 
4. MARKETIGN ISSUES

 

Number of Korean Women with Job to Reach 10 Million Soon [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/02/14/0301000000AKR20110214166000002.HTML

Summary: Ministry of Women & Family reported that the number of women with job reached 9.9 million in Korea in 2010, up by 142,000 from the previous year.  The number of women with job has continued a steady increase over the years.  In particular, the number of women with professional jobs has increased more rapidly, reaching 2 million in 2010.  In other words, 21 percent of women with job were in professional jobs.

 

Lotte Department Store to Reduce Sales Mark-up by 1 to 5 Percent [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/02/14/0302000000AKR20110214208800003.HTML

Summary: Lotte Department Store, the leading department store chain in Korea, announced on Feb. 14 that it will reduce the sales mark-up that it collects from the suppliers and tenant retailers by as much as 5 percent.  The announcement followed the meeting between the Fair Trade Committee and the leading retail companies on Feb. 9.  According to the industry sources, average mark-up taken by retailers is 25.6 percent for department stores; 24.3 percent for hypermarkets; and 32.5 percent for TV home shopping companies.

 

Entry of SSM into a Traditional Market Zone Denied for the First Time [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/02/15/0318000000AKR20110215069800055.HTML

A plan to open a Super Supermarket (SSM) store in Gimje city (Junbook province) was denied by the city government based on the Retail Industry Development Act introduced in November 2010.  The act prohibits opening of stores by large-scale retailers within 500 meters from designated ¡®traditional market zones¡¯.  This was the first case that the act made a real effect and is likely to be reflected on pending cases in other cities.
 
5. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES

 

S. Korea, Canada to expand 'green energy' cooperation [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/14/17/0501000000AEN20110214000900320F.HTML

Full text: South Korea and Canada agreed to expand technology cooperation in the eco-friendly "green energy" sector, the government said Monday.   The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said it signed a memorandum of understanding with Canada's Ministry of Natural Resources in Seoul that aims to promote joint projects that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reliance on fossil fuels.   "Both sides agreed to engage in projects in such areas as carbon capture, development of clean, renewable energy technologies, eco-friendly combined heat and power plants, green cars, and smart grids," it said.    Seoul and Ottawa want to draw up a detailed plan for joint research and development, and to commence work within the year, the ministry added.

 

 

The information in this report was compiled by the Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea. The press summaries contained herein do NOT reflect USDA, the U.S. Embassy, or other U.S. government agency official policy or view point. U.S. food exporters can learn more about market opportunities in South Korea by reviewing ATO Seoul¡¯s Exporter Guide and other reports available at www.fas.usda.gov by clicking on ¡°attaché 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