South Korea Halts Imports of U.S. Beef from Two Facilities

SEOUL — South Korea temporarily halted imports from two U.S. meat processing centers after finding beef ribs in shipments that arrived last week, the government said Tuesday.

Under a deal reached in January 2006, South Korea agreed to allow the import of boneless beef from cattle under 30 months old.

It has not allowed the import of bone-in beef like ribs, although talks have been held on easing this rule.

The National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service said it found the unauthorized ribs in two shipments during routine import inspections. They were part of a larger shipment of beef exported from meat processing facilities run by Cargill Inc. and Swift & Co.

Seoul banned American beef after a case of mad cow disease was reported in the U.S. in December 2003. South Korean authorities temporarily halted American beef imports in May after discovering ribs. They also found that boneless meat shipments intended for U.S. consumers were shipped to South Korea by mistake.

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