South Korea to temporarily remove import duties on egg products

The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a regulation on removing import tariffs on egg products in the latest move to resolve a supply shortage sparked by the worst outbreak of bird flu in South Korea, officials said.

The move will allow local companies to import 98,000 tons of shell eggs, powdered eggs and six other types of egg products without tariffs between Wednesday and June 30.

The government said it will later decide whether to extend the temporary lifting of tariffs by taking into account the supply and demand situations of eggs, the officials said.

Currently, South Korea imposes 8 to 30 percent tariffs on imported egg products.

South Korea has been in talks with the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Spain on importing egg products, though it remains unclear when the egg imports could begin.

The decision is part of South Korea's desperate efforts to overcome a short supply of eggs following the spread of a bird flu that has ravaged chicken farms across the country since November.

The planned imports of eggs is also meant to stabilize prices of eggs that have risen sharply in recent weeks.

South Korean quarantine officials have so far slaughtered more than 30.3 million poultry, including 25.8 million chickens, a move that has reduced the country's daily egg output by about 30 percent, according to government data.

South Korea has more than 156 million chickens and more than 9.5 million ducks as of the end of March, according to government data. (Yonhap)