MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Third Korean ban in a month on Chilean pork exports

South Korea for the third time in less than a month temporarily suspended all imports of Chilean pork following the discovery of excessive dioxin levels in a shipment of eleven tons, reported the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

The Korean report indicates that 6.2 to 8.3 picograms of dioxin were detected in the shipment, surpassing the two-picogram standard set by Seoul, and the European Union's one-picogram limit. A quarantine authority in Seoul said the inspections will resume only after Chilean authorities explain the contamination and outline countermeasures to prevent it from happening again. In Chile Foreign Affairs Minister Alejandro Foxley severely criticized his country's meat industry saying this kind of incident "is not tolerable in a country which is globalized and has free trade agreements with 57 countries". "There can be no repeat of this situation, it's not possible that companies involved in exporting an essential produce as pork to a market which is just opening, don't have a self regulating, self certifying mechanism to avoid damaging the industry and those companies which work inside the law", underlined Foxley. "From now on all pork exports will have to be certified by the Agriculture and Livestock Service (government animal and crops health authorities)", announced the Chilean minister. "Let's hope we can overcome this situation" said Foxley who added that the sooner "we comply with international regulations and requirements from the developing countries, the sooner we will begin being considered a first world country. Not certainly as has happened with this pork experience in Korea".