Today's Date:      Wednesday, March 14, 2012

 

1. BILATERAL/MULTILATERAL ISSUES

 

Farmer groups in Choonchun ask for discarding of KORUS FTA [Korean: BYK]

http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=102&oid=001&aid=0005554562

Summary: Some 30 members of the farmers unions gathered in front of the Gangwon Provincial Office and asked that the KORUS FTA be nullified.

 

2. LIVESTOCK ISSUES

 

Canadian beef arrives in Korea for the first time since 2003 [Korean: BYK]

http://www.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?idxno=2012031308101848678

Summary: The first shipment of Canadian beef cleared Customs after being banned for over 9 years.  The first shipment was only 265 kilogram and was air shipped into Incheon airport.  It underwent 8 days of laboratory inspection by quarantine authorities as it was the first shipment.

 

Taiwan finds Zilpaterol in imported Australian beef [Korean: BYK]

http://news.sbs.co.kr/section_news/news_read.jsp?news_id=N1001115795

Summary: According to the Taiwanese government, they took 219 samples of imported beef from the market and found residues of substances that are banned in Taiwan in 16.9 percent of the samples.  It found residues of ractopamine in 32 samples from the United States, and 2 samples, respectively from Australia and New Zealand.  It also found residues of zilpaterol in one of the Australian beef samples.  Zilpaterol is a growth hormone that is known to have a higher toxicity than ractopamine. 

 

3. MIFAFF PRESS RELEASES

 

► Minister Suh to depart Korea to attend FAO regional conference in Vietnam

 

► Inspection of burial sites of animals culled during the FMD crisis to be conducted

 

► MIFAFF will strongly push for breeding of new species using radiology

 

► MIFAFF to push establishing fish farms

 

► Avian influenza in South Choongchung province turns out to be LPAI

 

► QIA announces that Korean grapes will now be able to be exported to New Zealand

 

► MIFAFF to increase sample size for testing radioactivity residue from 436 samples in 2011 to 1,500 samples in 2012.  Major items to be tested are leaf vegetables, such as perilla seed leaf, lettuce, green onion leaves. Spinach, etc.

 

► U.S. FDA to conduct audit of oyster farms from March 19~30, 2012.  During this visit, FDA will also share information on testing methods for norovirus.