Minister: Australia FTA won’t burden beef

Tony Burke, Australia’s minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. By Moon Gwang-lip

As Korean farmers’ opposition to the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement rages on, an attempt to sign another FTA with a major beef exporter might sound untimely.
But Australia’s agricultural minister asserts that the pact would only benefit both countries, including their farming industries.
“Australian products in the Korean market very much compete with other imports. That’s where the competition lies,” said Tony Burke, Australia’s Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry at a lecture last Thursday hosted by the Australia New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Korea (ANZCCK) in a Seoul hotel.
Australian agriculture is uniquely positioned to provide Korea what the nation is less able to provide itself, he said. Burke, 38, marked his first visit to Korea since taking office last December by touring Korean farms.
He said hanwoo, or Korean-raised beef, is an area where Australia won’t compete. “Its market is its own — it’s an iconic product,” he said. “No amount of Australian beef is ever going to compete with high-quality hanwoo beef in Korea.”
Korea has signed FTAs with 16 countries, including the United States, and FTA talks with 32 other nations, excluding Australia, are underway.
According to the Korea Customs Service, of 203,000 tons of beef imports to Korea last year, 147,000 tons, or around 70 percent, came from Australia. Before a mad cow disease scare in 2003, the U.S. was Korea’s biggest beef supplier.
Burke said Australian beef could appeal to Korean consumers more than U.S. beef. “Australia has very good records in terms of the health of our products, or food safety,” he said. “When U.S. beef is on the shelf next to Australian beef, and consumers make a decision based on flavor, I think we can win.”
Organic food from Australia could benefit Korean consumers amid rising interest in health food here, Burke added.

By Moon Gwang-lip Staff Reporter [joe@joongang.co.kr]