Canada takes S. Korea to WTO over beef ban

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details from para 3)
SEOUL, April 10 (Yonhap) -- Canada has called on the World Trade Organization
(WTO) to review South Korea's current import ban on its beef which it claims
violates international trade rules, the Canadian embassy here said Friday.
Seoul's ban on Canadian beef has been in place since May 2003 after the country
confirmed its first made cow disease case, with bilateral talks on the resumption
of imports making little headway.
The diplomatic mission said the action is being taken because Seoul has not
clarified when it will open its market despite a range of scientific evidence
supporting the safety of Canadian beef and cattle.
It also raised complaints over a decree passed last year in South Korea enforcing
the Prevention of Livestock Epidemics Act that effectively blocks imports of
Canadian beef and meat parts from cattle over 30 months. The revision prohibits
imports of beef from countries with reported cases of mad cow disease within the
last five years.
While the Canadian government has decided to resolve this long standing issue by
taking the matter to the WTO, Ottawa is hoping the dispute can be settled without
taking further action, the embassy added.
The announcement comes after Ottawa's Trade Minister Stockwell Day said a
"consultation" session has been requested to find a middle ground on the
sensitive trade issue.
Under WTO rules on dispute settlements, a consultation is the first step in
working out a trade dispute, with talks to begin within 30 days of the request
being filed. If no agreement is reached within 60 days of the request filing, the
complainant can ask for a dispute settlement panel to be set up that will make a
definitive ruling.
Related to the decision, Seoul's Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and
Fisheries said it has held talks with Canadian officials since the country was
designated as a "controlled bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) risk" country
in May 2007. BSE is the official term for mad cow disease.
"We plan to conduct bilateral talks on the issues raised by Canada based on
outstanding WTO rules," Chang Ki-yoon, head of the ministry's veterinary office
said without going into details.
Canada officially asked for the lifting of the ban in June 2007, with two rounds
of talks between experts being held later that year and in November 2008. Seoul
has called for another round of talks in late June.
Before the ban, Canada shipped 16,400 tons, or US$37.4 million worth of beef to
South Korea, giving it the fourth largest market share among imports after the
United States, Australia and New Zealand.
The North American country has reported a total of 15 mad cow cases so far.
Ottawa counters that it has received the same "controlled risk" classification
from the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health as the United States,
which technically allows the country to export beef with almost no restrictions
if certain cattle parts are properly removed in the butchering process. Canada
last reported a mad cow case in November 2008.
The brain-wasting illness is suspected of causing the fatal variant
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. Scientists say BSE is most likely caused by
cattle being given protein-based feed made from other mammals.
South Korea lifted its ban on U.S. beef last year after imposing a blanket ban in
late 2003.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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