South Korea Cancels Inspection, Frustrating Lula Government's Push to Open Market for Brazilian Beef
Key takeaways
- According to a statement sent by agricultural attaché Tiago Charão de Oliveira in Seoul, the inspections were suspended with no new date scheduled.
- The stage is considered decisive for authorizing exports, as it verifies compliance with sanitary and quality requirements.
- Negotiations to export Brazilian beef to South Korea have dragged on for more than 20 years, since Lula’s first term.
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According to a statement sent by agricultural attaché Tiago Charão de Oliveira in Seoul, the inspections were suspended with no new date scheduled. The South Korean government said this year’s priority inspections are focused on agricultural products. Brazil’s Agriculture Ministry declined to comment.
The stage is considered decisive for authorizing exports, as it verifies compliance with sanitary and quality requirements. The cancellation surprised the sector, since South Korea had already sent the inspection plan and identified the plants to be visited in June.
Opening the market was one of the main goals of Lula’s trip to the country in February and had been presented by the government as a major diplomatic advance after Seoul signaled it would carry out the required inspections.