Recalled U.S. Beef Not Sent to Korea: Embassy

U.S. beef from a California meat company that was recalled over the weekend has not been exported to South Korea, the South Korean embassy here said Tuesday.

The Westland/Hallmark company does not have export processing approval from the South Korean government, and therefore has not been shipping their products to Seoul, according to the embassy.

The embassy's statement reaffirms the U.S. Department of Agriculture's announcement that the beef from Westland/Hallmark has not been exported to South Korea and Japan since the discovery of a mad cow disease at an American farm in 2003.

The California company announced on Sunday a recall of some 65,000 tons of beef, or 143 million pounds, after an undercover video surfaced showing workers kicking and using forklifts to force cows to walk. It is the largest beef recall in history.

Cows that cannot walk, called downer cows, have a higher risk of diseases, including mad cow disease. The U.S. government bans downer cows from the food supply.

The U.S. has been pressuring South Korea, with which it has signed a free trade agreement, to reopen its market fully to American meat, linking it to congressional approval of the trade deal.

Seoul had stopped importing U.S. beef after the 2003 mad cow disease scare but agreed to partially lift restrictions by allowing in boneless products to reduce health risks. (Yonhap)