The Korea Times

Cargill opens $100 mil. livestock feed plant

By Lee Hyo-sikLee Bo-kyeun, CEO of Cargill Agri Purina, speaks during a press conference at the Westin Chosun Hotel, downtown Seoul, Wednesday. The Korean unit of Cargill, a U.S. grain and livestock feed producer, has opened a $100 million plant, capable of producing 870,000 tons of feed annually, in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province./ Courtesy of Cargill Agri PurinaCargill, a U.S. grain and livestock feed producer, has opened a $100 million livestock feed mill here, capable of producing 870,000 tons of feed annually, putting it in a better position to compete with market leader the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, or Nonghyup.Cargill Agri Purina, Cargill’s Korean unit, will operate the plant built on a 52,610 square-meter site in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, to capitalize on the country’s rapidly-growing animal food market in line with Koreans’ increasing meat consumption.“It took more than three years to complete our Pyeongtaek plant. It marks one of the most significant milestones in Cargill’s long history in Korea,” Lee Bo-kyeun, CEO

Nov 11, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Cargill opens $100 mil. livestock feed plant

Companies

Youth job fund: another form of tax

By Lee Hyo-sikIs a youth job fund, set up in September under President Park Geun-hye’s initiative, a new form of tax targeting chaebol owners and corporate executives?High-profile figures in the business world, including the heads of the country’s family-controlled conglomerates, have been rushing to donate money to the Youth Hope Fund over the past month. The envisioned state-run Youth Hope Foundation is expected to use the donations to implement a wide range of programs to help young people find jobs at home and abroad.The question now is whether the business tycoons are providing the money solely to improve job market conditions for young people. Or are they doing so in a bid to curry favor with President Park who wields absolute power over who gets what?When contacted by The Korea Times, companies only say that their owners and salaried CEOs have made the donations to the fund in good faith.However, what business circle insiders are saying is different. They say most donors, particularly those who have reaped benefits under the incumbent administration, offered the mo

Nov 10, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

BMW vehicles catch fire on road

By Lee Hyo-sikFour BMW vehicles caught fire here over the past week while being driven, raising concerns among owners of cars made in Germany. The incidents will likely further raise concerns about the safety and reliability of German automobiles, following Volkswagen’s recent emissions cheating scandal.BMW Korea said Tuesday that the four vehicles caught fire while on the road. The cause is yet to be known, according to the carmaker.On Nov. 3, a BMW 520d sedan became engulfed in flames in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. Firefighters were dispatched to the scene to extinguish the burning vehicle. Two days later, another 520d sedan was destroyed by fire on the road near the World Cup Stadium in western Seoul.On Nov. 7, a BMW 5 Series sedan also caught fire in Guri, Gyeonggi Province, and a day later, a BMW 7 Series car was destroyed by fire on the Seoul Ring Expressway near Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province.BMW Korea said it is doing everything it can to find the cause of the fires, adding that all the vehicles were manufactured in the early 2000s.“We first would like to apologize fo

Nov 10, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Korea to export beef to Hong Kong

By Lee Hyo-sikKorea is widely expected to export “hanwoo” beef to Hong Kong as early as December, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Tuesday. If this happens, it will be the first overseas shipment of beef from the country’s indigenous cattle.The ministry said Hong Kong authorities are about to complete its 8-month-long quarantine procedure of hanwoo, adding that breeders will soon be able to ship local beef to the city.Korea and Hong Kong began negotiations in March this year about the shipment of hanwoo. Hong Kong authorities completed a risk assessment in April and reached a consensus with their Korean counterparts on details of quarantine and sanitary rules in June.In August, local farms seeking to export beef completed their registrations with the Hong Kong government.Last month, Hong Kong quarantine officials came here to conduct field inspections on hanwoo farms, slaughter houses, feed plants and other related facilities.“Hong Kong authorities are now evaluating the results of their field inspections. If they find no probl

Nov 10, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

2 New Wolseong reactors go online successfully

The No. 1 and No. 2 nuclear reactors at the New Weolseong Nuclear Power Plant in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province./ courtesy of Korea Hydro & Nuclear PowerBy Lee Hyo-sikKorea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) held a ceremony Monday to mark the official operation of two reactors at its New Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province.The ceremony, hosted by KHNP CEO Cho Seok, invited more than 1,000 guests, including Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Yoon Sang-jick and other senior government officials, as well as Gyeongju citizens.The New Wolseong No. 1 and No. 2 reactors, each capable of generating 7.9 billion kilowatts of electricity annually, have been performing without a glitch, proving the safety and operational reliability of Korea’s nuclear reactors, according to the state-run nuclear power plant operator.The No. 1 reactor began producing power on July 31, 2012, while the No. 2 reactor has been in commercial operation since July 24 this year. The two reactors account for 3 percent of Korea’s electricity generation capacity, enabling

Nov 9, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

Pernod Ricard dedicated to preserving marine environment

Patricia Ricard holds a sea urchin at the Paul Ricard Oceanographic Institute on the island of Embiez, France. The institute, set up by Paul Ricard, the founder of French liquor maker Pernod Ricard, has been conducting academic research and civil campaigns to preserve the world’s marine environment. / Courtesy of Pernod Ricard By Lee Hyo-sikFrench liquor maker Pernod Ricard has been mobilizing resources over the years to help preserve the world’s marine environment, honoring the spirit of its founder, Paul Ricard.Ricard set up a research institute in 1966, which later became the Paul Ricard Oceanographic Institute. The organization, on Island of Embiez, off the southern coast of France in the Mediterranean Sea, is headed by his granddaughter, Patricia Ricard, who recently visited Korea to form a stronger partnership with universities and other academic organizations here dedicated to protecting the ocean.In an interview with The Korea Times, Ricard said the institute has been studying how man-made pollution has affected the marine environment and what needs to be don

Nov 8, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Pernod Ricard dedicated to preserving marine environment

Companies

Korea to resume kimchi exports to China

By Lee Hyo-sikKorea will soon be able to resume shipping kimchi to China as regulators on the mainland are set to ease rules on one of Korea’s most representative dishes, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Friday.The news came after the Korea-China summit between President Park Geun-hye and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang Saturday, where the latter said China will take steps to bring made-in-Korea kimchi back to the mainland as soon as possible.In February, the Chinese government revised its sanitary and quarantine guidelines on Korean kimchi to allow it to be imported and sold to Chinese consumers. But Korea has not been able to ship kimchi because Chinese regulators have not taken the necessary administrative steps to get the trade going.Until 2009, Korea exported kimchi to China, but in 2010 the Chinese government strengthened its rules on Korean kimchi and other imported food. It did not recognize kimchi as a fermented food and imposed a guideline that kimchi cannot contain more than 30 colitis bacteria per 100 grams.Citing the rule, China has been

Nov 6, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

T'way Air flies to Macau, Ho Chi Minh City

By Lee Hyo-sikHahm Chul-hoT’way Air CEOT’way Air, Korea’s leading low-cost carrier (LCC), will begin flying to Macau and Ho Chi Minh City, offering more options to local travelers who seek to visit the two Asian cities at lower costs.The budget carrier headed by CEO Hahm Chul-ho will launch the Incheon-Macau route on Nov. 27 catering to those wanting to visit the city famous for its colonial Portuguese heritage and casinos.T’way Air will operate a Boeing 737-800 airplane on the route, departing Incheon International Airport at 9:35 p.m., on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. On Sunday, it will take off at 10:35 p.m. The flight takes about three-and-a-half hours.The plane will leave Macau International Airport at 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and arrive at Incheon at 5:55 a.m. the same day. On Monday, the plane returns to Incheon at 6:55 a.m.In addition, T’way Air will operate a daily flight between Incheon and Ho Chi Minh City from Dec. 24, becoming the country’s first LCC to do so.On Monday, Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday,

Nov 5, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

T'way Air flies to Macau, Ho Chi Minh City

Companies

KEPCO wins $60 mil. power grid deal in Dominican Republic

An employee of the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) works on a high-voltage line in the Dominican Republic. The state-run utility company won a $60 million contract to construct an electric distribution network spanning 870 kilometers in the Caribbean nation. / Courtesy of KEPCOBy Lee Hyo-sikThe state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) has won a $60 million contract to build a nationwide power grid in the Dominican Republic, the largest power line construction project the company has ever secured abroad.KEPCO said Thursday that it signed a preliminary contract with Dominican state power company, CDEEE, to complete the construction of an electric distribution network by 2017, which will extend 870 kilometers throughout the Caribbean nation. The company plans to erect more than 1,400 utility poles to connect the grid.“We secured the deal in fierce competition with 13 global power companies,” KEPCO CEO Cho Hwan-eik said. “We believe that our successful track record here helped us win the latest contract. As soon as we sign a formal contract with CDEEE, we will st

Nov 5, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Companies

'Korea to remove barriers for foreign investors'

Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Yoon Sang-jick, third from left, speaks during a meeting with AMCHAM Chairman James Kim, across the table from Yoon, and heads of foreign companies, at the Lotte Hotel, downtown Seoul, Thursday./ Courtesy of Ministry of Trade, Industry and EnergyBy Lee Hyo-sikTrade Minister Yoon Sang-jick has pledged to remove barriers that discourage non-Korean companies from building plants and hiring workers here.He made the remarks during a meeting with James Kim, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM), and heads of foreign companies operating in the country, Thursday.“To attract more investment from abroad, the government will listen more to foreign companies and reflect their opinions in policies,” Yoon said. “Policymakers, including myself, will make every effort to make regulations more foreign-business friendly.”Other meeting participants included AMCHAM President Amy Jackson, McDonald’s Korea CEO Joe Erlinger and eight heads of non-Korean companies.Yoon has said the government wants to increase this ye

Nov 5, 2015By Lee Hyo-sik

Lee Hyo-sik

Read more

Cargill opens $100 mil. livestock feed plant

Youth job fund: another form of tax

BMW vehicles catch fire on road

Korea to export beef to Hong Kong

2 New Wolseong reactors go online successfully

Pernod Ricard dedicated to preserving marine environment

Korea to resume kimchi exports to China

T'way Air flies to Macau, Ho Chi Minh City

KEPCO wins $60 mil. power grid deal in Dominican Republic

'Korea to remove barriers for foreign investors'

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