Cheap US Beef Draws Crowds
Bad Publicity Leaves Buyers Unsure of 2nd Purchase
By Kim Hyun-choel
Staff Reporter
U.S. beef appears to be appealing to Korean customers since going on sale in major local discount stores last week.
On a rainy Thursday afternoon, many shoppers were at the butcher's corner of a Lottemart store at Seoul Station.
The ``crowd'' at the U.S. beef stall marked a contrast with shoppers intermittently visiting sections selling homegrown cattle, ``hanwoo'', and Australian beef. The Hanwoo and Australian beef sections occupy greater floor space than the U.S. beef corner.
A 43-year-old female office worker said the current economic slump made her try cheaper beef. She came shopping from the neighboring Mapo-gu district on her day off, and bought 800 grams of meat for 16,000 won ($10.8). She said it was her first time buying imported beef.
"I used to buy hanwoo or pork instead, never having bought American beef," said the woman, who only wanted to be identified by her family name Kim. "But it is hard to get by these days when everything is getting pricey. I also heard U.S. beef tastes ok, so I decided to give it a try."
Another housewife in her 60s, who also refused to reveal her name, said she's already bought it once, and was satisfied with the quality. But asked if she is keen on buying it more often, she said she was not sure because her family doesn't buy beef that often.
Three major discount store franchises resumed selling U.S. beef from Nov. 25, nearly a year after sales were suspended, and American beef was the winner on the first day. American beef surpassed hanwoo and Australian beef at E-Mart and Homeplus, while Lottemart said it sold almost as much as it did hanwoo.
Sales have exceeded expectations on most counts. For the first three days after going on sale, American beef sold over 200 tons at the three retailers' stores nationwide, with E-Mart selling the most at 91 tons.
Sales of U.S. beef exceeded 300 kilograms last weekend, surpassing other competitors, according to Lottemart's Seoul Station store.
"There were requests for American beef from some customers even before the sale, but we were not sure how well it would sell," one employee at the Seoul Station store said. Consequently, it is selling much better than expected."
All in all, it is the price advantage that attracts customers into purchasing U.S. beef despite the lingering fear of mad cow disease. At the Seoul Station store, top cuts sold at 2,180 won per 100 grams, 40 percent less than hanwoo, at 5,950 won.
Customers like Kim say they might have no other choice as long as nothing is done to stabilize homegrown beef prices.
"We wouldn't need to be worried about buying U.S. beef if we could choose between the two at similar prices," Kim said. "But right now, it just doesn't seem possible."
At all Lottemart stores, sales were up 270 percent compared to July last year, when only boneless meat was for sale. "Early sales of U.S. beef are much larger this year because they include some popular items such as 'L.A. galbi'," said Jung Sun-yong, chief of the farm products department at Lottemart.
The same trend is taking place at other retailers.
"Sales are fine for U.S. beef so far," an employee at the Mokdong store of Homeplus said. "In the end, it has a strong edge in price compared to hanwoo or Australian beef."
He said hanwoo sales haven't been seriously reduced. Since indigenous beef has its own fan base for quality, sales didn't fall that much in spite of the introduction of the U.S. product.
Australian beef, however, is losing steam. Basking in price competitiveness before its American rival came around, it is selling for significantly less than before.
"For now, about 60 percent of overall import beef sales are American," he said.
U.S. beef purchasers are somewhat older than usual beef consumers at discount stores. At the Lottemart store, most looked over 50, older than the usual housewives shopping there. Interestingly, some senior male shoppers were also observed.
Elderly shoppers showed up at other U.S. beef stores when the sale resumed in July, raising suspicions that some pro-U.S. right-wing groups were buying it in bulk. Lottemart said it may be partially true, but the customer age spectrum is widening rapidly.
"Most buyers were in their 50s and older for the first couple of days, but after last weekend, younger customers also began to buy U.S. beef," a spokesman at the Seoul Station store said.