Quarantine for German pork: South Korea draws conclusions!

Quarantine for German pork: South Korea draws conclusions!

In a drastic move, South Korea has banned all imports of German pork due to an outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD) in Brandenburg, Germany. The South Korean Ministry of Agriculture announced that the regulation would come into effect immediately after the virus was detected in samples from water buffalo from Hönow, a town near Berlin. Around 360 tons of German pork are currently undergoing quarantine inspection and are not allowed to cross the border due to this situation, as the APA news agency reported.

As part of the safety precautions, extensive virus tests are also being carried out on all pork products delivered to South Korea since December 27th. The Friedrich Loeffler Institute (FLI) has confirmed that a suitable vaccine against foot-and-mouth disease could be available within a few days. These rapid measures are of great importance because South Korea is an important market for pork for Germany. In 2019, South Korea imported around 106,000 tonnes before imports were halted due to a previous outbreak of African swine fever. Exports have been slow to recover since then, and the new restrictions could further complicate the situation Focus.de reported.

Consequences for the European market

In addition to the import restrictions, the Netherlands has also responded by imposing a nationwide ban on the transport of calves. This is done to minimize possible risks of FMD spreading, although there is no direct evidence of infections in the Netherlands. According to information from Vienna.at Since December 1st, over 3,600 calves have been transported from the affected area in Brandenburg to the Netherlands, which explains the precautionary measures. The development of the situation remains tense, while German exports of pork have been declining for years and were around 2.3 million tons last year. The recent events are putting further strain on the already fragile export sector.