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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Korea to launch intense inspection into seafood imports on Fukushima woes

A citizen participates in the process of checking the safety of seafood in the southern port city of Tongyeong, June 27. YonhapKorea will conduct an "unprecedentedly intense" special inspection into the marking of country of origin for imported seafood products amid concerns over Japan's planned release of contaminated water from its crippled nuclear power plant, the oceans ministry said Wednesday.The 100-day intensive inspection will begin this month to check if importers, distributors and retailers properly mark the origin of major seafood items coming from overseas, such as scallops, sea bream and sea squirts, Vice Oceans Minister Park Sung-hoon said during a regular briefing on the Fukushima issue.Japan plans to release radioactive water from the Fukushima plant into the sea soon, as the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday that a two-year review found Tokyo's plan to be consistent with its safety standards.Korea banned all seafood imports from eight Japanese prefectures near Fukushima in 2013 on concerns over their radiation levels in the wake of the meltdown incident

Jul 5, 2023
Korea to launch intense inspection into seafood imports on Fukushima woes

No. of HIV carriers increased 9.3% last year

gettyimagesbankBy Jun Ji-hyeThe number of people who newly contracted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) last year reached 1,066, an increase of 9.3 percent from the 975 infections reported a year earlier, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), Thursday.HIV is a virus that attacks the body's immune system and can lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). While AIDS is the most advanced stage of HIV, a person with HIV will not necessarily develop AIDS.Among the 1,066 people, 825, or 77.4 percent, were Korean nationals, while 241, or 22.6 percent, were foreign nationals. The KDCA said the ratio of foreign nationals contracting HIV has been rising, as they accounted for 19.5 percent in 2020, 20.7 percent in 2021 and 22.6 percent last year.HIV carriers were mostly men, who accounted for 92.3 percent, compared to women at 7.7 percent. No information was provided about transgendered virus patients. By age, those in their 30s were the most at 34.9 percent, followed by those in their 20s at 31.5 percent and those in their 40s at 16.5 percent. The KDCA's

Jun 29, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
No. of HIV carriers increased 9.3% last year

Fukushima radiation to have minimal impact on Korea's waters due to ocean currents: gov't

Park Ku-yeon, left, the first deputy chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, speaks during a daily briefing at the government complex in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap Korean shores will be little affected even if the radioactive water from Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant is released into the sea because ocean currents would carry it away, an official said Thursday.Outlining several simulations conducted by scientists from both home and abroad, Park Ku-yeon, the first deputy chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, said it would take approximately 10 years for the discharged contaminated water to reach Korean waters."The reason why we are not significantly affected is due to ocean currents, even though it is located right next to Japan," Park told a daily briefing on the Fukushima issue.Since the plant is situated on Japan's eastern coast, the Kuroshio ocean current would carry the discharged water toward the western coast of N

Jun 29, 2023
Fukushima radiation to have minimal impact on Korea's waters due to ocean currents: gov't

Global biomanufacturing training hub in Korea to educate 1,000 workers this year

Hwang Seung-hyeon, sixth from left in front row, director general of the Global Vaccine Hub Office at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, poses with participants in an introductory course of the Global Training Hub for Biomanufacturing at Seoul National University Siheung Campus in Gyeonggi Province, June 19. Courtesy of Ministry of Health and WelfareFirst education program this year kicks off June 19 for two-week runBy Jun Ji-hyeThe Global Training Hub for Biomanufacturing (GTH-B), established in Korea in 2022, supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), is set to offer a variety of educational courses this year on vaccine and biologics manufacturing to 1,000 workers in the industry from around the world. In February of last year, the WHO announced the selection of Korea as a global biomanufacturing workforce training hub, aimed at supporting self-sustainable vaccine production in low- and middle-income countries by providing training in vaccine and biologics manufacturing.The establishment of the global training hub came at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic had underscored in

Jun 29, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Global biomanufacturing training hub in Korea to educate 1,000 workers this year

Korea to release sea salt reserves amid high prices, demand

Oceans and Fisheries Minister Cho Seung-hwan, left, helps workers put salt into sacks at a storage facility in Sinan County, South Jeolla Province, Friday, amid a surge in sun-dried salt prompted by Japan's upcoming release of radioactive water from its damaged nuclear reactors in Fukushima. YonhapThe oceans ministry said Wednesday it will release sea salt reserves to cope with recent price hikes and rising demand.Up to 400 tons of salt will be released to major discount chain stores and traditional markets across the country starting Thursday through July 11, and they will be retailed at about 20 percent off the consumer price for June, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.Sea salt prices jumped more than 10 percent on-year this month due mainly to the fall in production amid unfavorable weather conditions, according to the Korea Agro-Fisheries Food Trade Corp.Demand for sea salt has also surged recently in South Korea, as some shoppers and retailers are stockpiling it in fear of a supply shortage and the potential health hazards stemming from Japan's planned release of

Jun 28, 2023
Korea to release sea salt reserves amid high prices, demand

No radionuclides in Fukushima wastewater have exceeded limits this year: gov't

Park Ku-yeon, center, the first deputy chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, speaks during a daily briefing at the government complex in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapRadionuclides detected in treated water from Japan's crippled Fukushima plant have not exceeded permissible limits so far this year, a South Korean official said Wednesday.On Tuesday, the Seoul government had said six types of radionuclide have been detected at levels exceeding permissible limits even after treatment through the plant's custom purification system known as ALPS, but most of the cases came before 2019. Clarifying the issue, Park Ku-yeon, the first deputy chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, said Seoul has "tentatively confirmed" that no radionuclides detected this year in treated water have gone over limits."It appears the ALPS technology has gradually improved and stabilized," Park told a daily briefing on the Fukushima issue. "Even if radionuclides going over limits are found, water containing them isn't released immediately. It goes through another purification process."P

Jun 28, 2023
No radionuclides in Fukushima wastewater have exceeded limits this year: gov't

Yoon says he will launch 'quantum platform' to spur research, create economic value

President Yoon Suk Yeol looks at a model of a quantum computer at an exhibition hall of Quantum Korea 2023 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, June 27. YonhapPresident Yoon Suk Yeol said Tuesday he will launch a "quantum platform" to spur research and development in quantum science and help it create economic value.Yoon made the remark while meeting with top quantum scholars and students, including Nobel laureate John Clauser; Charles Bennett, a physicist at IBM Research; and professor Kim Myung-shik of Imperial College London.The meeting was held on the sidelines of Quantum Korea 2023, an event bringing together scholars, government officials and businesspeople to discuss global trends related to quantum science at Dongdaemun Design Plaza."President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would create a quantum platform, a digital and physical space where quantum experts and legal, accounting and business experts from around the world, including the Republic of Korea, will be able to conduct research and development together and share their accomplishments to create economic value," the presidential

Jun 27, 2023
Yoon says he will launch 'quantum platform' to spur research, create economic value

Paik Hospital's shutdown raises concerns over medical services vacuum in Seoul

Employees of Inje University Seoul Paik Hospital hold pickets to urge the hospital to retract its decision to shut down in front of the hospital in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeThe decision to shut down Inje University Seoul Paik Hospital is raising concerns over a possible medical service vacuum in central Seoul, as the 82-year-old facility, the only general hospital in Seoul's Jung District, has also played a significant role as a medical institute dedicated to infectious diseases. On Tuesday, the hospital's board of directors finalized the decision on the closure of the hospital due to mounting losses. The hospital, located near Myeongdong Cathedral, has accumulated a deficit of 174.5 billion won ($135 million) over the last two decades despite its desperate efforts to normalize its business, according to hospital officials.They say the hospital will support the transfer of patients currently hospitalized there and the reemployment of its nearly 400 employees at affiliated hospitals, including one in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. If due procedures are carried out as pl

Jun 21, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Paik Hospital's shutdown raises concerns over medical services vacuum in Seoul

Gov't, PPP agree to expand radioactivity testing in ocean amid concern over safety of seafood

Government officials and lawmakers of the ruling People Power Party hold a policy consultation meeting at the prime minister's official residence in Seoul, Sunday. YonhapThe government and the People Power Party (PPP) agreed Sunday to expand the inspection of radioactivity levels in the ocean, in response to heightened public concern over the planned release of contaminated water from Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.The agreement was reached during a policy consultation meeting between the PPP and top government officials. The nuclear power plant, which was severely damaged by a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011, is scheduled to release the water into the ocean starting this summer.According to the agreement, the number of testing sites for seawater will be increased from the current 92 places to 200. Also, the concentration levels of cesium and tritium, a radioisotope of hydrogen, will be tested every other week, compared with the current frequency of once every one to three months.Both sides also pledged their support for the marine product industry, which has been ad

Jun 18, 2023
Gov't, PPP agree to expand radioactivity testing in ocean amid concern over safety of seafood

First heat wave advisories this year in place in 13 regions

People cross a road shimmering in the heat in Gwangju, 267 kilometers south of Seoul, on June 15. YonhapThe first heat wave advisories of the year were issued for more than a dozen inland areas, including Gwangju and Daegu, on Saturday, the weather office said.The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) announced that these advisories came into effect at 11 a.m. in 13 regions across the country. The affected areas are Hongcheon and Chuncheon in Gwangwon Province; Wanju in North Jeolla Province; Gwangju; Damyang in South Jeolla Province; Daegu; and Gumi, Yeongcheon, Gunwi, Chilgok, Gimcheon, Sangju and Uiseong of North Gyeongsang Province.Last year, the first heat wave advisories were also issued around this time.A heat wave advisory is issued when the highest perceived temperature is expected to be 33 degrees or higher for two or more consecutive days or when significant damage is expected due to a sudden increase in perceived temperature or prolonged heat wave conditions.As the scorching heat continues with clear skies, more regions are expected to come under the advisories until

Jun 17, 2023
First heat wave advisories this year in place in 13 regions
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