Quarantine officials examine beef imports from the United States yesterday at a quarantine station in Gonjiam, Gyeonggi. The government will checking 30 percent of all U.S. beef, up from the current 10 percent. By Kang Jung-hyun

Opposition politicians tried to whip up an anti-U.S. beef frenzy following the discovery of a mad cow disease-infected dairy cow in California.

But the public reacted so calmly that at least one retail chain that suspended sales of U.S. beef backtracked after only a few hours.

Homeplus, one of the two large discount stores that suspended U.S. beef sales Wednesday morning changed its mind after nine hours and resumed sales at 7 p.m. The store’s decision came after the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries said it would not stop imports of U.S. beef but would strengthen quarantine checks.

“We resumed displaying and selling U.S. beef at our stores following the government’s announcement that there is little possibility that the infected beef has been imported to Korea,” said an official from Homeplus.

Lotte Mart, the other store that suspended U.S. beef sales, continues to keep its supply in its freezers.

“We’re waiting for the right time until public trust over the mad cow disease case is restored completely,” said an official from Lotte Mart.

Meanwhile, the opposition Democratic United and the Unified Progressive parties demanded yesterday the government immediately suspend U.S. beef imports.

“The government promised [in May 2008] that it would suspend imports of U.S. beef right away if [additional] mad cow disease was found,” said Park Jie-won, a DUP Supreme Council member. “It should keep its word.”

Park criticized the government’s slow response to a possible public health threat.

Lee Ji-an, deputy spokeswoman of the UPP, also criticized the Lee Myung-bak government, saying, “because it is under pressure from the U.S., it is risking the health of its people.”

The Blue House dismissed the attacks as being political.

“The government’s foremost priority is people’s health,” said Blue House spokesman Park Jeong-ha. “We insisted earlier on that the government would immediately suspend imports only if mad cow disease detected in the U.S. threatens national health but there are no grounds for believing that at present.”

Agriculture Minister Suh Kyu-yong also said in a press briefing yesterday that the infected cow was a dairy cow over 30 months of age. Korea only imports U.S. beef from cattle under 30 months and with so-called specified risk materials, such as spines, excised. To alleviate public concern, Suh said the government will strengthen quarantine measures by checking 30 percent of all U.S. beef imports, up from the current 10 percent.

He also dismissed doing any political favor for the U.S.

“The government’s decision puts the priority on the people’s health and safety,” he said. “There were no political considerations.”

Along with Korea, major export markets for U.S. beef including Canada, Japan, and the European Union were open to imports as of yesterday as the U.S. government said there was no danger infected meat would enter the food chain. Indonesia, however, halted imports from the U.S. The Southeast Asian country accounts for 0.6 percent of U.S. beef exports.

In 2011, Korea was the fourth-largest importer of U.S. beef after Canada, Mexico and Japan, according to the USDA’s Economic Research Service. In February, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation, it was the second largest importer after Mexico.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said, “The positive response from trade partners was a sign of confidence in the preventative measures taken by the U.S.” He said the U.S. “is not concerned about a potential cut off in imports.”

Vilsack said he sent a letter to 20 major trading partners yesterday “to reassure that the products they’re buying are safe.”

“Our investigation is ongoing, but here are a few things that we do know for a fact: It is perfectly safe to eat beef and drink milk without concern about BSE,” Matt Herrick, an official at the Department of Agriculture, told Yonhap News Agency.

“This detection should not affect U.S. trade and we will continue to work with our trading partners, including South Korea, in a transparent manner,” Herrick said.

한글 관련 기사

혼비백산한 美, 한국 콕 집어 "감사"

美 "한국 등 쇠고기수입 유지 감사"

농무장관 20여개국에 안전성 주장 서한

톰 빌섹 미국 농무부 장관은 25일(현지시간) 캘리포니아주(州) 광우병 사태와 관련, 수입금지 조치를 취하지 않은 국가들에 감사의 뜻을 전했다.

빌섹 장관은 이날 워싱턴DC에서 기자회견을 갖고 "멕시코, 캐나다, 일본, 한국 등이 현 시점에서 수입중단 조치를 취할 이유가 없다고 공개적으로 밝힌 데 대해 감사한다"고 말했다.

그는 "우리의 감시시스템이 적절하게 작동하고 있으며, 관련 식료품은 안전하다는 점을 소비자들에게 각인시킬 수 있길 바란다"면서 "문제의 젖소가 광우병에 걸린 것으로 확인한 것도 이 덕분"이라고 강조했다.

빌섹 장관은 또 "오늘 20개 주요 무역상대국에 미국산 쇠고기와 유가공 제품이 안전하다는 점을 확인하는 서한을 보냈다"고 덧붙였다.

이와 관련, 농무부 당국자는 이날 광우병 확인에 따른 쇠고기 수출 차질 가능성 등에 대한 연합뉴스의 질의에 "이로 인해 무역에 영향을 미쳐선 안된다"고 주장했다.

이 당국자는 "우리는 한국을 포함한 무역상대국과 투명한 방식으로 공조하길 바란다"면서 "한국 등이 소비자들에게 미국산 쇠고기와 유가공 제품의 안전성을 교육하는 데 필요한 정보를 제공할 것"이라고 말했다.

그는 특히 "문제의 젖소는 월령이 30개월 이상인 것으로 알고 있으며, 공식 조사가 완료되면 이를 포함해 결과를 발표할 것"이라고 덧붙였다. 미국은 30개월 미만 쇠고기만 한국에 수출하고 있다.

이에 앞서 농림수산식품부는 미국에서 광우병이 발견됨에 따라 필요한 조치를 준비하되 미국산 쇠고기에 대한 검역 중단 조치를 당장 취하지는 않기로 했다고 밝혔다.