South Korea's department stores are expected to sell U.S. beef following local discount retailers' resumption of its sale in November last year.

According to Yonhap News, Lotte Department Store, the nation's leading department store chain, is gearing up for the sale of U.S beef during the first half of this year, while other department stores including Hyundai and Shinsegae are weighing the timing.

South Korea banned U.S. beef outright after a case of mad cow disease in Washington State was confirmed in December 2003. The country resumed imports of the meat in October 2006 but then suspended quarantine inspections after banned backbones were detected in a shipment in October 2007.

Seoul and Washington signed a new import deal in April last year, sparking massive protests by concerned consumers here that prompted the two countries to limit imports to meat from cattle under 30 months old.

Under the deal, local beef importers resumed imports of U.S. beef in June last year, but large retailers had not sold the meat out of concerns over a backlash.

Local department stores believe that public opposition to U.S. beef has now eased as there have been no significant problems since discount stores resumed its sale, sources said.

Local top three discount stores ― E-mart, Homeplus and Lottemart ― launched the sale of U.S beef at the end of November last year to meet growing demand for the cheaper meat amid a deepening economic downturn.