Korea mulls sending inspectors to US amid beef scare

The Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry is considering the dispatch of an epidemiological survey team to the U.S. in the wake of the latest case of mad cow disease there.

In a news conference held Friday at the government complex in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, the ministry said it wants to ease public fears over the safety of American beef by sending the team. Instead of just relying on information from Washington, Seoul will try to confirm the meat`s safety on its own.

Yeo In-hong, director of the ministry’s food industry policy department, said, “Answers to our questionnaire were returned from the U.S. Agriculture Department today,” adding, “We`re considering dispatching an epidemiological inspection team because we think we should go and check ourselves to ease the people’s anxiety.”

If dispatched, the inspection team will visit the farm, butcher and processing sites, where the bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, occurred, and check documents on the infected cow and answers from the U.S. government. The team will confirm on its own the cause of the incident and the potential for its spread.

Yeo said, “If needed, we can ask the U.S. for a sample (brain tissue of the cow),” adding, “The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) is also analyzing a sample of the cow.”

On the possibility that the U.S. could deny Korea’s inspection, he said, “We don’t think so,” adding, “We asked the U.S. to cooperate if we dispatch an inspection team.” To raise objectivity of the inspection, Seoul will consider including in the inspection team representatives from civic groups or private sector experts.

On the possible revision of import hygiene conditions for American beef, Yeo said, “If the hygiene inspection system is too seriously flawed to be operational in practice, it should be revised, but there is little chance of this,” adding, “Discussing revision of the conditions is not proper.”

The Food Ministry will also form a task force to check in real time difficulties facing Korean cattle farms and trends abroad. It will offer daily media briefings to release related information transparently.

In addition, Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik mentioned the furor over American beef in Korea in a national policy coordination meeting Friday. “By placing top priority on public health and safety, the government will cope with the issue in line with scientific and rational grounds,” he said.

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