South Korea lifts ban on U.S. poultry imports

South Korea on Thursday agreed to lift its ban on imports of U.S. poultry products and added a temporary measure to allow U.S. fresh eggs to enter the country duty free.    South Korea has lifted a ban on imports of U.S. poultry and poultry products, including fresh eggs. 
   The country established the ban in response to a recent detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in the U.S. poultry flock.
   The United States notified the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) on Aug. 11 that it is now free of HPAI.
   “This notification removed any justification for U.S. trading partners to restrict imports of U.S. poultry due to HPAI concerns,” the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said in a statement.
   South Korea was the only country to impose a ban on all U.S. poultry in response to the HPAI detection. The USDA said it will continue to work with the South Korean government to limit future HPAI-related import restrictions to just affected areas, which is consistent with OIE guidelines.
   “The United States has the strongest avian influenza surveillance program in the world and we were at once able to quickly identify, confine, and control this most recent disease outbreak,” said U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue in a statement. “Our hope is that Korean officials will recognize that our system works and will move towards a regional approach in the event of any future findings of bird flu.” 
   The USDA noted in 2014, the last full year without any HPAI-related trade restrictions in place, South Korea imported $122 million in U.S. poultry products, including eggs, making it the United States’ 10th largest market. South Korea’s imports from all poultry sources exceeded $350 million in 2016, but only $39 million came from the United States.
   Included with lifting the ban on U.S. poultry products, South Korea has announced a temporary measure that will allow U.S. eggs and egg products to enter the country duty-free to counter a shortage of domestic supplies. 
   Earlier this year, USDA worked with South Korea’s agriculture ministry to reopen the market for U.S. eggs and egg products, but imports were again restricted after the HPAI detection in Tennessee. Year-to-date exports through June have totaled $12 million, up almost $10 million compared with the same period last year, the department said.