FAS/Seoul Monitoring of Media Reporting on Agricultural Issues

FMD found at nation’s largest breeding farm (English, CSY)

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931848

Summary: Thirteen pigs were confirmed Saturday to have foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) at Korea’s largest breeding farm - the Department of Animal Resources Development in Cheonan, South Chungcheong - which provides sperm from high-quality livestock to farms nationwide, the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said yesterday.   There are currently 350 cows, 1,650 pigs and 13,430 poultry (chicken and ducks) at the facility, the ministry said.  The ministry said yesterday that the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service conducted an inspection Saturday on 13 pigs that at showed signs of FMD at the breeding farm. All 13 tested positive.  The South Chungcheong Provincial Office shut down the facility immediately after being told of the outbreak on Saturday and culled the pigs that day. The department said it vaccinated all of its animals in January.

U.S. beef imports climb on local FMD outbreak (English, CSY)

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931837

Summary: Imports of U.S. beef rose sharply last year as Korea continues a three-month-long battle to contain foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation.  Korea imported 84,822 tons of U.S. beef in 2010, up 42.6 percent from a year earlier. The figure was higher than the overall increase in beef imports, indicating the revived popularity of the American beef, which lost ground in 2008 amid public opposition against U.S. beef imports because of FMD fears. Overall beef imports rose 16.2 percent last year from 2009, according to the group.

U.S. beef accounted for 32.5 percent of Korea’s imported beef market last year, up 6 percentage points from 2009, it said. American beef also narrowed its gap with Australian beef, which claimed 53 percent of the market.   As for pork, U.S. imports were the most popular. Korea purchased 75,362 tons of U.S. pork in 2010, accounting for 26.1 percent of the nation’s imported pork consumption. Canadian pork was the runner-up with an 18.9 percent share.

S. Korea culls more than 3 mln livestock to control FMD (English, CSY)

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/02/12/0501000000AEN20110202002400320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea's quarantine authorities said Wednesday that they ordered the culling of more than 3 million animals to control the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).    The farm ministry said 142 cases of the highly contagious disease have been reported nationwide so far, including an outbreak in Hongseong, 150 kilometers south of Seoul, late Tuesday, after the first outbreak was confirmed on Nov. 29.  It said that while nationwide vaccinations were ordered for all 13 million heads of cattle and pigs in the country, with inoculations administered from Dec. 25 onward, the outbreak is estimated to have caused damage exceeding a minimum 1.5 trillion won (US$1.34 billion), although the number could easily exceed the 2 trillion won mark.   The government has destroyed a total of 148,000 heads of cattle, 2.87 million pigs and over 7,000 goats and deer as the disease has spread across six provinces and two large cities.

Wild birds cause of avian flu: Gov’t [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931902

Summary: Migratory wild birds are mainly responsible for the severest outbreak of avian influenza (AI) to hit South Korea, the government said yesterday.  Seoul confirmed its first outbreak of the virulent H5N1 strain on Dec. 31 after some poultry farms reported sudden deaths of animals earlier in the month. It has since ordered the culling of more than 5.41 million birds to stop the spread of the contagious disease.  An analysis of the 40 confirmed cases of bird flu in the country showed contact with wild birds was the primary cause of AI cases, said Joo Yi-seok, head of the Animal Disease Control Bureau at the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service.

In light of FMD, pigging out has its consequences [English, CSY]

[AN UNHEALTHY FOOD SUPPLY] The dark side of factory farming

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931907

Summary: In Korea, a country where factory farming is prevalent, ethical issues have been raised on the treatment of farm animals and activists have called for increased health and safety standards.  The way farmers treat their animals here has far-reaching implications for animal and human health, and the viability of the industry.  Animal rights activists, veterinarians and professors agree that low social recognition of the importance of farm-animal health and safety has made Korea vulnerable to epidemics, including FMD, which is fatal for cloven-hoofed animals like cows, pigs and deer.   The most recent outbreak of FMD started on Nov. 29 last year in Andong, North Gyeongsang, and in two months it swept through the entire nation - except South Jeolla and Jeju Island.   The central government has faced harsh domestic and international criticism for its response to the outbreak.  In December, after the government ran short of euthanasia drugs used to slaughter livestock, Seoul sent thousands of animals to their death by burying them alive.

Additional FMD case found in S. Korea's largest port city [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/05/25/0502000000AEN20110205002500315F.HTML

Summary: South Korea confirmed an additional case of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in its largest port city on Monday as quarantine authorities start the second stage of its nationwide vaccination process, the government said Monday.  The case at the pig and goat farm in Busan, which raised 568 animals, brings the total number of officially confirmed FMD outbreaks to 146, after livestock started showing symptoms in late November, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said. It is also the first confirmed case in the city located 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul.

Pork Meat Menus Disappear from Restaurants due to High Pork Meat Price [Korean, OSY]

http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/economy/2011/02/08/0302000000AKR20110208082400061.HTML

Summary: According to aT, price of pork meat in retail stores marked W11,010 per 500 gram on Feb. 1, which was 30 percent higher than a year ago.  Many restaurants have reportedly dropped pork meat menus due to the soaring price.  For example, School Foods, a leading franchise quick service Korean restaurant reported that it dropped pork cutlet menus.

Extra funds considered to pay for FMD losses [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931958

Summary: The ruling Grand National Party said yesterday it will review all possible measures - including a supplementary budget - to ease the country’s damage from Korea’s worst-ever foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak.

“The disease has hit the country so hard. We will hold a meeting with the administration [tomorrow] and visit the outbreak sites to conduct an objective survey,” said Chung Ok-nim, a spokeswoman for the GNP, shortly after the ruling party’s meeting to come up with a comprehensive measure. “We will actively push forward plans to raise funds required to resolve associated problems.”  Chung also quoted GNP floor leader Kim Moo-sung as saying: “If necessary, we will think about creating a supplementary budget. To have specific countermeasures to fight the disease, financial resources are needed, and we will review all possibilities to meet the need.”

<Column> Regulation: livestock permit system is a necessary vice [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2931965

Summary: The livestock permit system has long been used in Denmark and the Netherlands, the forerunners of the livestock industry. But small-scale farmers are strongly opposed to the new regulation. To stop the shameful cycle of burying millions of livestock alive and restore the country’s “FMD free” status as soon as possible, extraordinary measures are needed.   Otherwise, our meat market will be flooded with imports. Neighboring China is the largest pig breeder in the world with a total of 460 million heads. Our refrigerators are already filled with meat imports from the United States and Australia. If we don’t take action now, we may have to give up the sweet, sweet taste of Korean beef and pork.

U.S. Congress fully supports KORUS FTA – Will continue to raise the beef issue”[Korean: BYK]

http://www.seoul.co.kr/news/newsView.php?id=20110209005008

Summary: In an interview with the Seoul Newspaper at USTR, Wendy Cutler explained that the U.S. administration was putting in a lot of efforts to get the KORUS FTA ratified by the U.S. Congress.  In her answer to the question whether the beef issue could come up again during the process of discussing the KORUS FTA with the Congress, she replied that the United States will continue to raise the concern within the United States over the issue of U.S. beef access to the Korean consumers.  When asked if that meant that the U.S. would be asking Korea for a full liberalization of the beef market, she replied that she didn’t have anything further to state about the beef issue other than what she had explained earlier.

Japan partially suspends U.S. beef imports [Korean: BYK]

http://mbn.mk.co.kr/pages/news/newsView.php?category=mbn00008&news_seq_no=1033284

Summary: Japan is partially suspending beef imports from the United States.  They received a shipment of large intestines from a plant in Nebraska which could not be verified whether they were from cattle under 20 months.

GNP Considers Additional Budget for FMD [Korean: BYK]

http://www.todaykorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=134585

Summary: The ruling Grand National Party and the Korean Government will meet to discuss whether there is a need to create an additional budget to cope with the ongoing FMD disaster.  They are planning to meet on February 10^th to discuss this issue.

Korea faces shortage in milk supply [Korean: BYK]

http://biz.heraldm.com/common/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20110209000075

Summary: The milk commercials on TV and radio have recently disappeared.  This is because the milk companies have stopped airing advertisements as they are facing a shortage in milk production due to the culling of dairy cattle because of FMD.  The real challenge will be in March when kids return to school and the school milk program begins.  According to this news article, over 34,000 heads of dairy cows have been culled due to FMD.  This accounts for over 7 percent of the total dairy cow population which is around 440,000 heads.  The FMD is also affecting the supply of several pork menus in restaurants, such as pork cutlets, pork feet and Korean style pork sausages.

Stock Inventory of No-fat Milk Powder Drops to a 15 Year Low … Bakery and Snack Industry Are Worried [Korean, OSY]

http://www.hankyung.com/news/app/newsview.php?aid=2011013112051&sid=010405&nid=004&ltype=1

Summary: Stock inventory volume of no-fat milk powder has dropped to 938 tons as of year end 2010, which is the lowest level since 1995.  The sudden decline in the inventory is due to the depopulation of a large number of milk cows under the recent Foot & Mouth Disease outbreak.  Bakery and snack food industry are showing concerns on the issue.  Government has eliminated import tariff on no-fat milk powder (8,000 tons ceiling) earlier this month to stabilize the price.  However, due to the lengthy process involved in the importation of milk powder under the TRQ system, it is likely that traders will face reduced supply of milk powder and rising price for some months to come.

Pork prices to be voluntarily set at 6,500 won per kilogram [Korean: BYK]

http://www.ytn.co.kr/_ln/0102_201102010004520172

Summary: The Korea Swine Association held a press conference on behalf of the swine farmers and stated that they would set a ceiling of 6,500 won per kilogram for pork wholesale prices.  They explained that the reason for such voluntary action was due to the concern that soaring pork prices could not only hurt the lower income people but also the overall pork industry, including pork restaurants, etc.  The association will also urge farmers to slaughter the hogs at 100 kg., rather than the current average of 110 kg., to increase the supply of pork into the market place.

Spilled FMD milk leads to stench, supply gap [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932019

Foot-and-mouth disease breaks out in N. Korea: RFA [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/10/91/0501000000AEN20110210000700320F.HTML

Full text: North Korea has reported an outbreak of the livestock foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease on its soil to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Radio Free Asia said in a report on Thursday.    North Korea's agricultural ministry sent a letter to the U.N. organization on Wednesday, notifying it of the outbreak of the contagious animal disease and asking for emergency support, the media reported, citing a U.N. official.  The official did not mention the region of the outbreak nor the number of livestock that showed FMD symptoms, it added.  The organization will send experts to North Korea "at an appropriate time" to help the reclusive communist country contain the FMD disease, it said.    South Korea has been also battling with the FMD disease that has spread nationwide in the last three months and caused over 3 million livestock to be culled.

FMD, bird flu outbreaks inflict huge damage on S. Korea [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/09/0501000000AEN20110209010000320.HTML

Summary: Recent nationwide outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and bird flu are estimated to have cost South Korea 2 trillion won (US$1.8 billion), a government official said Wednesday.  Since the first FMD case was confirmed on Nov. 29, Seoul has culled and buried 3.22 million heads of cattle, pigs, goats and deer, with the number of birds destroyed to combat the avian influenza (AI) hitting 5.41 million since late last year.

Serious concern over pollution at culling sites [English, CSY]

Gov’t orders inspections after report finds contaminated water leakage

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932069

Summary: Amid growing, serious concern over water and soil contamination at the burial sites of animals culled in the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak, the government and the ruling party yesterday decided to conduct environmental surveys at all sites nationwide.  The Lee Myung-bak administration and the Grand National Party convened a meeting to discuss the serious environmental concerns. The Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Public Administration and Security will be in charge of the nationwide surveys, said Representative Kim Young-woo.  A quick reaction department will be created under the military’s chemical, biological and radiological warfare unit to step up the efforts to contain the problems related to the outbreak of FMD as well as avian influenza. The team will work with civilian and government disease control task forces.

Foot-and-mouth could stutter FTA schedule [English, MGF]

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2011/02/123_81174.html

Summary:  As Korea continues to be exposed for its ineptitude in containing the foot-and-mouth outbreak, conflict is emerging between ministries over whether the country should go slower in chasing free trade pacts with other economies.  The Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries insists that the government should take its foot off the gas pedal in free trade talks, at least until the disease is contained and the damage sustained by livestock farmers is assessed more thoroughly. The Ministry of Strategy and Finance, however, will have none of the argument.

Rival Camps to Discuss Assembly Resumption[English, MGF]

http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/news_Po_detail.htm?No=79403

Ruling and opposition parties will meet Monday for final coordination on the timetable and agenda for normalizing the extraordinary National Assembly session this month.  FMD will be discussed.

N. Korea’s FMD outbreak spreads across country: report [Korean: BYK]

http://www.koreaherald.com/national/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20110213000334

Summary: North Korea's foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) has spread across many parts of the country after the first case was confirmed in the capital city on Dec. 25, a U.S. broadcaster said Sunday.  Radio Free Asia (RFA), quoting a report by the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health, said the communist country confirmed that since the first case hit a small cattle farm in Pyongyang, the highly contagious animal disease has spread to at least five provinces.  While there are no reports of animals being culled and buried, North Korea said 11,165 animals have been infected so far. Of these, 8,640 pigs have died along with 15 cattle, it said.

<A Picture>Dairy dilemma [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932150

Seoul scraps milk production quota [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932062

Summary: The government announced yesterday a range of measures to stabilize the supply of milk, as foot-and-mouth disease and a colder-than-normal winter are causing decreased milk production. Seoul said that in an effort to boost production, it would scrap a policy it established in 2002 that aimed at reducing milk surpluses.  The Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said it would reduce tariffs on imported powdered milk, eliminate milk production quotas after production rights are transferred between farmers and consider the import of dairy cattle.  In the short term, the ministry plans to eliminate tariffs on 9,000 tons of powdered milk through June. It also plans to discontinue a reduction in milk production quota for the next two years, after introducing the quota system in 2002. If the foot-and-mouth disease epidemic continues, the ministry said it would consider importing dairy cows from mad-cow-disease free nations including New Zealand and Australia.

S. Korea confirms 2 more bird flu outbreaks [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/13/95/0501000000AEN20110213001500320F.HTML

Full text: South Korea on Sunday confirmed two additional bird flu outbreaks in areas near Seoul despite nationwide efforts to stem the spread of the disease.    The farm ministry said the new cases were reported at a medium-sized duck farm and a small poultry farm that raises chickens and ducks, which reported symptoms earlier in the week.    All 8,400 birds on the two farms in Hwaseong south of Seoul and Dongducheon north of the capital have been culled and buried, with other bird farms within a 3-kilometer radius being checked for infections.  The outbreaks are the first to be confirmed since a chicken farm that raised 35,000 birds tested positive for the virulent H5N1 strain on Wednesday, and the 42nd and 43rd outbreaks reported in the past 45 days.  Since Dec. 31 when the first two avian influenza outbreaks were confirmed, Seoul reported cases in five provinces with 5.45 million birds being destroyed at 249 farms so far.  Before the latest series of outbreaks, South Korea was hit by AI three times before, with the last cases occurring in April 2008 and resulting in a record 8.46 million birds being culled at a cost of around 264 billion won (US$235 million). Other outbreaks took place in the winter months of 2003-2004 and 2006-2007.

Milk shortage caused by FMD affecting local industries [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/13/30/0501000000AEN20110213001000320F.HTML

Summary: A nationwide milk shortage caused by the severest foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in South Korea's history is affecting local confectionery and dairy industries, corporate sources said Sunday.     Sources from Seoul Milk, Namyang Dairy Product Co. and the Korea Bakers Association said that as of December, the reserves of powdered skim milk stood at just 938 tons or a 77.3 percent drop from 4,137 tons reported a year earlier.  The drop is directly related to the more than 34,000 heads of dairy cattle that were culled and buried since late November when the first FMD was reported in the country.   The animals destroyed account for around 8 percent of total milk cows raised in the country. Seoul has ordered the culling of 3.29 million cattle, pigs, goats and deer so far to contain the FMD outbreak that has spread across most of the country at a cost of at least 2 trillion won (US$1.7 billion) so far.

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.

Measures to fight FMD contamination put in place [English, CSY]

Among actions: sensors at culling sites, water surveys

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932273

Summary: Monitoring devices with automatic sensors will be installed at the disposal sites of animals culled because of foot-and-mouth disease as a part of government efforts to manage snowballing health and environmental concerns.  Minister of Public Administration and Security Maeng Hyung-Kyu, Minister for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Yoo Jeong-bok and Minister of Environment Lee Maan-ee jointly held a press conference yesterday announcing the government’s comprehensive measures to prevent environmental damage from the mass culling of farm animals.

Additional FMD case found in central S. Korea [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/15/37/0501000000AEN20110215004900320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea confirmed one more case of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) on Tuesday as quarantine authorities pushed ahead with the second phase of nationwide vaccination of pigs and cattle.  The case, at a pig farm that raised 2,000 animals in Daejeon, brings the total number of officially confirmed FMD outbreaks since late November to 147, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said.   It is also the first confirmed case in the city, located 160 kilometers south of Seoul in the central part of the country.

Mistaken Virus Introduction Theory Leaves Blame on Innocent Farmers; Lee government's "foot and mouth response" hopeless [English, CSY]

http://english.khan.co.kr/khan_art_view.html?artid=201102151529407&code=710100

Summary: It has emerged that the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus that first broke out in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province last November, is a form close to that found in Hong Kong and Russia. This contradicts the government's announcement that it had deduced that the virus was brought into Korea by a livestock farmer who traveled to Vietnam.   The fact that the government was informed of experiment results from a globally officially recognised specialist FMD research institute indicating this in the early days of the outbreak, but did not make the information public for more than two months, has given rise to controversy over government's concealment and distortion.  On February 14, Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Choon-seog made public a report from the UK's Pirbright laboratory, the world's leading FMD research institute, on genetic tests on the virus affecting Andong. The report dated from November 30, 2010.

According to the report, government authorities gathered FMD samples for genetic testing from Waryong-myeon in Andong City on November 28, before asking Pirbright, an FMD laboratory approved by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).   Two days later, on November 30, the laboratory produced in its report a list of ten viruses in order of genetic similarity to the Andong virus. The laboratory's analysis said that the ten similar viruses had all occurred in Hong Kong and Russia in 2010, and that they ranged in genetic similarity from 99.06% to 98.9% to the Andong virus. FMD viruses that occurred in Vietnam were not even on the list.

U.S. beef and pork seize consumers’ dining table [Korean: BYK]

http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=201102151424111&code=920401

Summary:  Volume of U.S. frozen beef exports to Korea exceeds that of Australia in January, 2011.  According to Korea Customs, the United States exported 10,580 MT ($52,779,000) of frozen beef to Korea while Australia’s export marked 10,203 MT ($40,076,000), taking over the first place in market share of frozen beef.  The United States also marked the first place in pork export to Korea in January by exporting 10,261 MT ($26,280,000), overtaking Canada which only exported 6,083 MT ($11,260,000). [Embassy comment:  Please note that Australia is still the largest beef exporter to Korea when you add both chilled and frozen beef exports to Korea.  Total beef imports from Australia in January 2011 was 13,197 MT, while that from the United States was 11,437 MT.]

United States is the largest beneficiary from FMD [Korean: BYK]

http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=201102152136105&code=920100

Pork wholesale prices mark 6,703 won [Korean: BYK]

http://www.hankyung.com/news/app/newsview.php?aid=2011021598061

Summary: Average pork wholesale prices marked 6,703 won/kg. on Feb. 15^th.  This is an increase of 9.3 percent (570 won) in a matter of one week.  The pork wholesale prices stabilized after the Korea Swine Association announced that they would maintain the pork prices at 6,500 won/kg or lower. Pork prices reached historical high level of 8,372 won/kg. on Jan. 26 but had dropped to 6,072 won on Feb. 1, after the announcement by the association on Jan. 31.

Inadequate Response to "Environmental Pollution" Caused by FMD Burials Is Deeply Worrisome [English, CSY]

http://english.khan.co.kr/khan_art_view.html?artid=201102161525307&code=790101

Summary: An investigation by Gyeonggi Province of 1844 foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) burial sites has revealed that around 17% are close to waterways, near the region of the source of the Namhan River at Paldang Water Purification Plant, or near steep gradients.   In this way, mass livestock burials have taken place at sites fundamentally unsuited to the purpose. The investigation showed, moreover, that supplementary facilities were necessary due to ground subsidence in 47% of cases, inadequate waterways or reservoirs in 56% of cases, and inadequate leachate piping in 45% of areas. Inadequacy is to be found everywhere.

We can guess at the total lack of planning behind the burials, with proper guidelines far from being observed. And we cannot help but worry about environmental disasters as a consequence of this.  Still more shocking is the fact that the result of investigations of 831 water samples taken from the vicinity of burial sites in Gyeonggi show 27.4% of them to be unsuitable for drinking. This gives rise to concern that water pollution may already be widespread. Despite this reality, the government and ruling party continue to insist that media reports have been exaggerated and that there is nothing to worry about.

Seoul to raise tariff quotas on pork, powdered milk [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/18/89/0501000000AEN20110218005300320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea will "sharply" increase the amount of pork and powdered milk subject to its tariff quota system in a bid to ease supply shortages prompted by a massive slaughter of livestock amid the spreading foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), a senior finance ministry official said Friday.  It also plans to add 24 more imported items, including cheese and butter products, to the tariff quota list, brining the total number of goods to be eligible for relatively lower duty rates to 99, Vice Finance Minister Yim Jong-yong said at a meeting with other economy-related officials. The lower import duties will be effective until the end of June.

S. Korea's FMD outbreak to subside by early March: minister [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/18/55/0501000000AEN20110218003500320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea's severest foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak is expected to come under control by early March as nationwide vaccination efforts take effect, a senior policymaker said Friday.  In a radio interview with a local broadcaster, Farm Minister Yoo Jeong-bok said the number of FMD cases has started to fall off in recent weeks after the first round of nationwide vaccinations have been completed on all cattle and pigs.

Cleanup work begins at Gyeonggi FMD burial sites [English, CSY]

Waste water being extracted in effort to lessen pollution

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932550

Summary: Amid growing fears that the millions of animals buried due to foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) will contaminate underground water sources, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government yesterday began extracting waste water from burial sites in Namyangju and Yangpyeong.  As of yesterday, roughly 3.3 million animals nationwide have been culled and some 700,000 of them have been buried at 2,017 sites in Gyeonggi, according to the central government. There are about 4,130 burial sites nationwide.

Imports of pork and powdered milk to be raised [English, CSY]

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932424

Summary: Korea will “sharply” increase the amount of imported pork and powdered milk subject to its tariff quota system in a bid to ease supply shortages prompted by a massive slaughter of livestock amid the spreading foot-and-mouth disease, a senior finance ministry official said yesterday.  It also plans to add 24 more imported items, including cheese and butter products, to the tariff quota list, bringing the total number of goods to be eligible for relatively lower duty rates to 99, Vice Finance Minister Yim Jong-yong said at a meeting with other economy-related officials. The lower import duties will be effective until the end of June.

S. Korean imports of U.S. beef almost double in 2010 [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/22/17/0501000000AEN20110222000900320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea's imports of U.S. beef nearly doubled in 2010 from a year earlier due largely to dwindling concerns over its safety here, the government said Tuesday.   The farm ministry said the country imported 125,681 tons of beef from the U.S. last year, up 97 percent from 63,817 tons tallied in 2009.    The total effectively exceeded amounts imported by Seoul before the U.S. beef import ban went into effect in late 2003 after the first case of mad cow disease was reported in the North American country.    South Korea reopened its market to U.S. beef in 2008, although meat can only be provided from animals under 30 months old to alleviate domestic concerns about mad cow disease that can be fatal to humans.    Because of the mad cow scare, there were widespread national protests after Seoul agreed to fully reopen its market, which caused the government to ask Washington for minor modifications to beef trading conditions.

Vaccines could have stopped FMD [English, CSY]

But government was preoccupied with maintaining vaccine-free status

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932488

Summary: To protect less than $2 million worth of meat exports, the government has turned the country into a massive graveyard of farm animals.  Since foot-and-mouth disease broke out in November, more than 3.3 million cows and pigs have been slaughtered, livestock farmers have suffered emotionally and the country is stuck with a bill of trillions of won to compensate farmers for culled animals. Much of this could have been avoided if the government had chosen the more effective and less costly solution of vaccination instead of killing cattle and pigs.  But when vaccinations are used, the country loses its vaccine-free status, which makes its meat exports less desirable.

FMD-related damages hover around 3 tln won: farm minister [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/24/0501000000AEN20110224011000320.HTML

Summary: Damages caused by the severest foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in South Korea's history hovers at around 3 trillion won (US$2.6 billion), the country's farm minister said Thursday.  In a meeting with reporters, Yoo Jeong-bok said that direct losses to livestock and money used for quarantine efforts and compensation is estimated at around 2 trillion won, with the rest involving environmental corrective measures.

PM blames climate, FMD for inflation [English, CSY]

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2011/02/113_82031.html

Summary: Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik countered the allegation Thursday that a misguided monetary policy was responsible for soaring prices, saying inflation is a combined result of climate change, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and other non-policy factors.  During the National Assembly’s interpellation session, Kim vowed to curb inflation by lowering tariffs and taking other necessary policy measures.  But opposition party lawmakers, including Rep. Park Byeong-seug of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), urged him to take firmer action. They called for replacing Cabinet ministers responsible for an allegedly wrong policy package, if necessary.

S. Korea to expand tariff quota on powdered milk, pork belly [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/02/28/25/0502000000AEN20110228002500320F.HTML

Summary: South Korea will expand the amount of powdered milk and frozen pork belly subject to no import taxes as part of efforts to ease price hikes sparked by the massive slaughter of livestock amid the spreading foot-and-mouth disease, the finance ministry said Monday.   The measure, finalized during a Cabinet meeting held earlier in the day, will go into effect from early March under the government's quota tariff system, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.

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.  Under the latest decision, the government will impose no import duties on 30,000 tons of powdered milk until the end of this year. It earlier sought to apply the tax exemption to 9,000 tons of the product by the end of June.

GNP demands dismissal of farm minister over FMD spread [English, CSY]

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2011/02/28/21/0301000000AEN20110228001700315F.HTML

Summary: The Grand National Party (GNP) has formally asked President Lee Myung-bak to sack his farm minister over one of the worst outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease here, party officials said Monday, as the ruling party struggles to woo voters ahead of the April 27 by-elections.   The demand was delivered to presidential aides in their regular policy coordination meeting with officials at the GNP and the government on Sunday.   "Participants from the GNP requested that the minister for food, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, Yoo Jeong-bok, take responsibility, as the foot-and-mouth problem has abated somewhat," a senior GNP official told Yonhap News Agency by phone, requesting anonymity.

Fresh bird flu strain confirmed in southern area [English, CSY]

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2011/02/113_82126.html

Full text: About 1,000 ducks found dead earlier this week at a farm in southern South Korea were confirmed Saturday to have been infected with a highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza, raising concern that the lethal virus is spreading in the country, officials said.  The H5A1 virus was found on the duck farm in Damyang county of South Jeolla Province, about 350 kilometers south of Seoul, quarantine officials said.  It was the 46th confirmed bird flu outbreak in the country since the first case was reported on Dec. 29. In the past two months, a record 5.5 million birds have been culled.  Quarantine officials at the province said they have been slaughtering about 13,000 ducks at poultry farms in Damyang to try to contain the spread of the virus.   "We are reinforcing quarantine measures to prevent the avian influenza from spreading here," said an official at the South Jeolla provincial government.   The spreading bird disease is a double whammy for South Korea which has been battling what many officials say is the worst-ever outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. (Yonhap)