July 14, 2008

South Korea implements beef labeling

South Korea launched its country-of-origin label regulation for beef sold in local markets on July 8.

The Korea Herald reported that the new regulation has stirred criticism throughout the country, due to the unwillingness of small restaurant owners to start labelling.

The paper said that a large number of smaller eateries purchase beef cuts according to price and quality, not paying too much attention to country of origin.

The new rule will have restaurant owners change their menu displays whenever products are purchased from a different country of origin.

Reportedly, restaurants that fail to provide country of origin labels will be fined KRW50,000.

Businesses engaging in false notifications could expect fines up to KRW2 million.

US$1 = KRW1,001 as of July 14, 2008