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According to the Customs Service of South Korea, the meat imports of the Asian country accounted for 3,000 million dollars (2,268 million euros) during the fiscal year 2011, 55% more than last year. Thus, in the first 11 months of the year, the South Korean market has imported 850,000 tons of meat worth of 2,950 million dollars (2,230 million euros), a figure which stood at 1,930 million dollars (1,459 million euros) in the same period during 2010.
The increase is due in particular to the rise in the consumption of pork, which has grown to 460,000 tons in the period between January and November, compared to 289,000 tons in 2010.
Customs sources attribute this increase in imports to price increases triggered by the FMD outbreak in late 2010, which led to culling of 3.7 million animals before the disease became extinct in April. In addition, last June, the South Korean government eliminated all tariffs for 130,000 tons of fresh and frozen pork, a measure that contributed to slower growth in prices, yet the continued growth of prices forced the Executive to remove the liens of all fresh pork until late September
Sunday January 16, 2012/ ICEX/ Spain.
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