S. Korea finds banned antibiotics in Chinese duck meat By Lee Joon-seung

SEOUL, Nov. 7 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's quarantine service said Friday that it has found banned antibiotics that can cause serious bone marrow defects in cooked duck meat from China.

Chloramphenicol levels were very low at 1.3 parts per billion, but since the
material should not be in food at all, the entire shipment of 18.3 tons will
either be sent back or destroyed, the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine
Service (NVRQS) said.
The material, first introduced in 1949, is still used as a cheap and effective
antibiotic in poor countries, but limits have been imposed because it can in very
rare cases lead to aplastic anemia. This conditions hinders the body's bone
marrow from making new blood.
Seoul has banned its use in animals since 1991, with human use being limited to
eye drops and certain medical treatments.
NVRQS, under the farm ministry, said it has asked Chinese authorities to halt
shipment from Weifang Legang Food, and said it will halt all quarantine
inspections of meat from the company until it can determine the cause of the
contamination. About 52 tons of meat held in the customs area that had cleared
inspections will not be released to importers as a precautionary measure.
South Korea does not import fresh poultry from China, but brought in 550 tons of
cooked duck and chicken meat this year from China.
yonngong@yna.co.kr