After 13 Years Since the Mad Cow Disease Crisis... South Korea Becomes the Largest Importer of U.S. Beef

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] It has been revealed that South Korea surpassed Japan last year to become the largest export market for U.S. beef (by meat volume). This comes 13 years after the nationwide large-scale candlelight protests against imports during the 2008 mad cow disease crisis.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) on the 9th (local time), U.S. beef exports to South Korea from January to November last year increased by 16% compared to the same period the previous year, reaching 253,175 tons. This is about 15,000 tons more than the 238,811 tons exported to Japan during the same period, which had been the largest export market for U.S. beef until 2020.

In terms of value, it was $2,135,737,000, a 39% increase compared to the same period the previous year. During the same period, U.S. beef exports to Japan amounted to $1,713,662,000.

Even when adding exports from December last year, South Korea is expected to have become the largest export market for U.S. beef.

Mad cow disease first occurred in the U.S. in 2003, leading to a complete halt in U.S. beef exports to South Korea, which resumed in 2008. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. beef exports to South Korea were 53,736 tons in 2008, increasing to 111,992 tons in 2012 and 116,933 tons in 2015, making South Korea the second-largest export market for U.S. beef after Japan.

Since then, U.S. beef exports to South Korea have continued to increase, with 165,561 tons in 2016, 170,517 tons in 2017, 225,474 tons in 2018, 242,272 tons in 2019, and 235,796 tons in 2020, maintaining its position as the second-largest export market.

Last year, while U.S. beef exports to South Korea increased by 16%, exports to Japan remained virtually stagnant, leading to the estimation that South Korea surpassed Japan as the largest export market last year.

The increase in U.S. beef exports to South Korea is attributed to the U.S. government and meat exporters actively pushing exports and pressuring market opening in South Korea, as well as improved perceptions of U.S. beef within South Korea.

In terms of value, during the same period, exports to South Korea amounted to $2,168,852,000, slightly more than Japan's $2,164,071,000. However, when including by-products such as tongue, feet, and tail along with meat, Japan is believed to have ranked first.

The USMEF stated, "From January to November 2021, total U.S. beef exports (including by-products) were about 1.32 million tons, a 16% increase compared to the same period the previous year, and the value exceeded $9.58 billion, a 39% increase compared to the previous year."

They added, "Exports to South Korea (including by-products) were 258,552 tons and $2.17 billion, representing a 13% increase in volume and a 36% increase in value compared to the same period last year," and noted that "this surpasses the record set in 2019, which was the highest annual figure."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.