By Kim Yon-se
Staff Reporter


South Korea is considering excluding some parts of cattle, such as brains, backbones and spinal cords, when it resumes the importation of U.S. beef as early as next year.

A livestock quarantine panel, which is responsible for determining the safety of imported beef, is expected to declare U.S. beef safe to consume and clear the way for its importation in its meeting on Wednesday.

However, the panel or the Korean government will likely attach some conditions such as the exclusion of body parts believed to cause mad cow disease.

The Food Safety Commission of Japan has announced that U.S. and Canadian beef is safe, paving the way for the government to ease a two-year ban. The Korean panel is likely to make similar statements.

While the Japanese government has imposed several conditions on the resumption of North American beef imports, 75 percent of surveyed Japanese consumers are unwilling to eat U.S. beef.

To ensure safety, the Japanese government plans to require U.S. beef imports be stripped of spinal cords and other specific risk materials.

The decision is expected to affect the meeting of Wednesday’s panel discussion in Korea. In 2003, South Koreans were extremely wary of ``sollongtang,’’ the nation’s traditional beef bone soup, even though leg bones have little likelihood of containing the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) epidemic.

``We are considering resuming the importation of U.S. beef by removing bones,’’ said an official of the Ministry of Agriculture & Forestry.

He said the government expects consumers will have less antipathy to U.S. beef if it allows only bone-stripped beef, adding, ``The process will make it easier for consumers to distinguish U.S. beef from others, including Korean and Australian beef.’’

In addition, the resumption of imports will likely be limited to meat from cows younger than 21 or 31 months, as is the case in Japan.

On Monday, a Japanese restaurant chain said it would not serve U.S. beef, claiming U.S. meat processing is insufficient to protect consumers against mad cow disease.

kys@koreatimes.co.kr