December 27, 2005

S Korea orders recall of contaminated Danish pork

Following a notice by the EU that pork from Danish Crown was contaminated with salmonella bacteria, South Korea on Tuesday issued an order to remove Danish pork from off its shelves.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry said that products from the Danish company will be recalled, including those currently stored in customs warehouses.

Antibiotics given to pigs have no effect on salmonella, but heat treatment of over 65 C for more than 10 minutes can kill the bacteria.

The South Korean government's measure, however, does not mean a ban on all pork from Denmark, although an estimated 1,080 kilogrammes of pork shipped from Denmark will be affected in the temporary order.

As of last week, South Korea imported a total of 281,951 tonnes of pork, with 22,408 tonnes or more than a tenth of it coming from Denmark.