Outreach Trip to the Horse Industry in Gyeongbuk Province, August 19-21, 2014

FAS Seoul (Kevin Smith, Agricultural Minister-Counselor and Kevin Sage-EL, ATO Director) made an outreach trip to the horse industry in Gyeongbuk province, August 19-21. Gyeongbuk province has laid out a strong plan to develop the horse industry for both racing and recreational riding. In particular, the province has designated the American quarter horses as the genetic foundation to breed horses for recreational riding. The province imported 50 quarter horses last year and is in the process of purchasing additional 60 quarter horses this year from the United States. Upon completion of phase one of their purchase plan by the end of 2015, the province will have a sizable genetic pool of over 200 American quarter horses. The province is also in the process to establish itself as a branch of the American Quarter Horse Association and the American Therapeutic Horse Riding Association for better international recognition. The outreach trip confirmed that Gyeongbuk province should offer excellent opportunities for American horses, both thoroughbred horses for racing and quarter horses for recreational riding, in the coming years. It was notable that the province and cities under it (Youngcheon, Sangju and Gumi) were working closely together to establish a network of breeding farms, training centers, academic institutes and public riding facilities. Furthermore, the thoroughbred race track in the city of Yeongcheon and the 80 km long recreational horse riding trail by Nackdong river, are both scheduled to be completed in a few years, and likely to firmly position Gyeongbuk province as a leading province for the horse industry in Korea upon completion.

IFT Show 2014, New Orleans, June 21-23, 2014

ATO Seoul led a food ingredients Korean buying mission to New Orleans, Louisiana and State of Mississippi to develop contacts with U.S. suppliers of food ingredients for processing. At the annual IFT show, the Korean buyers met with U.S. suppliers and reported $1.43 million in expected purchases over the next 12 months as a result of the show. Juices, sugar, sauces, dried fruits and nuts were principal food ingredients of interest sought by buyers. While the primary target of the mission was the IFT show in New Orleans, the team visited the city of Hattiesburg, Mississippi for site visits to blueberry farms, processing facilities, local neighborhood grocery, local restaurant and farmer’s house. The site visits were supported and arranged by U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council.

KORUS Agricultural Trade Roundtable, July 11, 2014

KORUS Agricultural Trade Roundtable, hosted by ATO Seoul on July 11, brought 80 leaders of the Korean food industry together under the theme of building stronger trade partnership between Korea and the United States. The event provided the audience with informative presentations on (1) International Grain Price Outlook (Korea Rural Economic Institute, KREI); (2) Korea’s Agricultural Imports Trends (ATO Seoul); (3) Outstanding trade/regulatory issues – Rice Tariffication, MRL, Biotech Labeling, Organic Equivalency Agreement, and KORUS FTA Origin Verification (OAA Seoul). In addition, the event provided a venue for the industry representatives to network each other and to share new ideas and business opportunities. Copies of the presentations are available from ATO Seoul upon request.