FAS/Seoul Monitoring of Media Reporting on Agricultural Issues
Today's Date: Tuesday January 28, 2011
For Coverage: January 27 - 28, 2011
Amcham head wants FTA approval [English, CSY]
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931580
Summary: Korea and the U.S. should push for an early ratification of their free trade agreement, Frank Little, the new chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce, said yesterday. The two nations reached an agreement on a revised trade pact in December and President Barack Obama suggested he would submit it shortly to the U.S. Congress when he made his State of the Union speech this week. Amcham will conduct lobbying in favor of the FTA when it conducts its annual meeting with U.S. lawmakers this spring. It also plans to host congressional delegations that are expected to visit Seoul this year.
Ruling party, gov't agree on early ratification of FTA with U.S. [English, CSY]
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2011/01/27/58/
Summary: The government and the ruling party on Thursday agreed to discuss how to deal with motions for the ratification of South Korea's free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States and the European Union as early as possible, a party spokeswoman said. South Korea and the U.S. await parliamentary ratification of two-way FTA after their trade ministers last December sealed the de-facto renegotiations of the deal originally signed three years ago under their previous administrations. Earlier in October, Seoul signed a separate FTA with the EU.
Korean Gov’t Plans to Get both KORUS FTA and KOEU FTA Ratified within the First Half [Korean, OSY]
http://kr.news.yahoo.com/service/news/shellview.htm?articleid=
Summary: Korean government has come up with a plan that seeks ratification of both Korea-U.S. and Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement within the first half this year. Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs has forecasted that EU Assembly will ratify the FTA bill in February. There was a government round table meeting among the policy makers from the ruling party, President’s office, and related Korean Ministries on the FTA issue on Jan. 27. The meeting has concluded that despite some barriers both in Korea and the U.S., there is strong potential for the FTA bill ratified both in Korea and the U.S. within the first half this year.
2. Grain and Oilseed Issues
Consumption of rice drops dramatically in last decade [English, CSY]
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931592
Summary: Annual rice consumption tumbled by more than 20 kilograms (44.1 pounds) per person in Korea over the past 10 years as locals diversified their diets to include more Western food and increased their intake of meat and fruit, the government said yesterday. According to Statistics Korea, individual rice consumption totaled 72.8 kilograms in 2010, a decrease of 1.2 kilograms, or 1.6 percent, from the previous year. Over a 10-year period, annual consumption per person plummeted by 20.8 kilograms, a decline of 22 percent. Although Koreans are eating less rice than ever before, they still consume more than their Asian counterparts. As of 2009, the average Japanese person ate 58.5 kilograms of rice a year, while the average Taiwanese consumed 48.1 kilograms of rice. Meat and fruit consumption is on the rise in Korea, with the average local consuming 36.8 kilograms of meat and 67.7 kilograms of fruit in 2009. The numbers are up 17 percent and 12 percent, respectively.
S. Korea confirms two more bird flu outbreaks [English, CSY]
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/01/27/05020
Summary: South Korea on Thursday confirmed two additional bird flu outbreaks in Gyeonggi Province near Seoul despite nationwide quarantine efforts. The farm ministry said the new cases were reported at poultry farms that raised chickens and pheasants in Pyeongtaek about 70 kilometers south of the capital city.
MIFAFF Minister to Resign After FMD Crisis gets settled down [Korean, CSA]
http://news.naver.com/main/hotissue/read.nhn?mid=hot&sid1=1
Summary: MIFAFF Minister Yoo stated on Jan 28 that “I will resign after eradicating FMD and getting all situations under control.” He called for an emergency press conference today and emphasized, “I will not cling to the Minister position.” Such statement seems to be given as an answer to the demand that someone should take a responsibility for the FMD crisis. He added that a politician should show accountability for issues regardless of the rights or wrongs of the matter.
Imports of Bottled Water on a Surge … Up 18 Percent in 2010 [Korean, OSY]
http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/01/27/0318000000AK
Summary: According to the Korea Customs Office, imports of bottled water amounted to $7.9 million (1,060 tons) in 2010, up 18 percent from the previous year. France was the leading export of bottled water to Korea with 78.5 percent market share, followed by Italy (7.2%), Fiji (3.7%), and the U.S. (2.5%). Average import price of bottled water, W907, was even higher than crude oil (W578).
'QR’ Code Attached to Jindo Green Onion, First Time among Fresh Vegetables [Korean, OSY]
http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/01/27/031
Summary: Jindo Provincial Government announced on Jan. 27 that packaging of green onion grown in Jindo will include a QR (Quick Response) code, though which consumers can obtain detailed information about the product at the point of purchase by scanning the code with a smart phone. Jindo accounts for 60 percent of green onion production in Korea, and introduction of the QR code will help the province promote the quality of its green onion to the consumers.
U.S. Considers Resume Food Aid to North Korea, 500,000 Tons a Year [Korean, OSY]
http://news.donga.com/Politics/3/00/20110127/34443714/1
Summary: Deputy Secretary of the U.S. State Department, who visited Seoul earlier this week, reportedly told the Korean government that the U.S. was considering resuming food aid program to North Korea, around 500,000 tons a year. Korean government expressed a concern that any friendly gesture by the U.S. would give a wrong message to North Korea under the situation when North Korea continued its nuclear weapon program.
North Korea needs 800,000 MT of rice this year [Korean: BYK]
http://www.ytn.co.kr/_ln/0101_200609151001328790
Summary: WFP estimated that North Korea needs 800,000 MT of rice support from foreign countries this year.
Government set to submit carbon trading laws [English, CSY]
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931593
Summary: Korea’s presidential committee plans to submit legislation on carbon-emissions trading to parliament next month despite opposition from business groups. The bill will have flexibility on the timing of its introduction and the quota for free permits, according to a report from the Committee on Green Growth to President Lee Myung-bak. Korea, Asia’s fourth-biggest polluter, said in November it aims to adopt a carbon-emissions trading system in 2013 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fight global warming. Under the initial plan, the nation will give away more than 90 percent of carbon permits in the first three years.
Korea to develop agricultural robots [English, CSY]
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2011
Summary: The Ministry of Knowledge Economy (MKE) said Thursday that it will channel a total of 100 billion won ($90 million) through 2013 in the seven crucial segments of education, water supply, manufacturing, firefighting, national defense, medical care and agriculture. “We are poised to pour 30 billion won this year alone into the seven sectors as well as encouraging innovative research on robots, which marks a substantial increase in support compared to the past,” an MKE official said. “One of the most significant focuses is the agricultural area, which has struggled to find workers. To grapple with these problems, we will employ autonomous robotic devices powered by high-tech sensors.”
To that end, the MKE will cooperate with the Rural Development Administration (RDA). “Robotics technologies are readily embraced by farmers. For example, we have already secured knowhow for unmanned auto-guidance tractors, which can be remotely controlled when pesticides are sprayed or in other hazardous environments,” RDA researcher Kim Sang-cheol said. “The global market for the agricultural machines is estimated to grow at double-digit rates per year. We will eventually be able to rack up exports amounting to $600 million from the field.” In addition, the RDA plans to develop autonomous plant buildings, which can churn out farm produce in the heart of cities with the help of robotic systems and state-of-the-art facilities.
This New Year, it’s either pantry or pocketbook [English, CSY]
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931605
Summary: As one of the two major traditional holidays marked by gift-giving and family gatherings, Lunar New Year is often accompanied by climbing food prices due to increased demand. However, a perfect storm of disasters - culls of chickens and ducks due to avian flu, foot-and-mouth disease culls of pork and beef, bitter cold that affected vegetables and fish - has caused this year’s fresh food prices to spiral to an alarming level, forcing consumers to choose between their dining tables or wallets over the holiday. According to the Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation (KAPE), the wholesale price of pork rose to a recent peak of 8,413 won ($7.55) per kilogram on Wednesday. The average wholesale price of pork for the month so far was 5,169 won, 56 percent higher than last January’s average of 3,859 won.
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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