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South Korea: Basic Information

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Pork and Poultry Meat

Koreans consume more pork than any other meat, in part because beef was in short supply and often quite expensive relative to pork. Chicken meat consumption was slow to grow in South Korea, partly because of a relative lack of recipes using chicken in the South Korean diet. The introduction of fast-food, fried chicken franchises, however, brought about expansion in broiler consumption in the 1980s and 1990s, and more growth is expected.

Since July 1, 1997, when imports of frozen pork and poultry meat were liberalized, the only formal barrier restraining trade for pork and poultry meat has been tariffs that were progressively reduced until reaching 25 percent for pork and 20 percent for poultry meat in 2004. Chilled pork and poultry meat were already free from quotas and have lower tariffs than those that face the frozen products (22.5 percent for chilled pork, 18 percent for poultry meat). Imports of chilled pork began late in 1996, after negotiations in 1995 ended a controversy over government-mandated short shelf-life rules for meats. Those rules would have effectively prevented imported chilled meat from being sent to South Korea in seaborne containers. South Korea has exported certain cuts of pork (notably loins) to Japan and other markets in some years. The government has sometimes subsidized the exports. Disease outbreaks have harmed pork and poultry farms in recent years (see Issues and Analysis).

Pork and poultry meat are produced intensively in South Korea, primarily using imported feedstuffs. About 7,000 hog farms and about 3,000 chicken farms (broiler and layer) dominate production,which is concentrated in the province surrounding Seoul, and, secondarily, in the southeast and central parts of the country. Pork production doubled in the 1980s and grew by over 50 percent in the 1990s. Both the number and weight of hogs slaughtered have increased over time. The broiler flock size has grown over the last decade, and the slaughter weight of broilers has increased, so that chicken meat production has shown an upward trend.

As in the intensive livestock industries in other major producing countries, South Korea's farms have been getting larger and larger. For pork production, boom-and-bust cycles led to concentration of production among lower cost producers. Farms with more than 1,000 hogs dominate the swine sector, with some farms having more than 10,000 hogs. The poultry industries have not seen the same wild swings in production and prices as the swine sector, but nevertheless have experienced a steady growth in size of operation as the cost advantages of large operations have aided their competitiveness. Most chicken production is on farms with 40,000 or more birds. Despite government restrictions on the maximum farm size because of environmental concerns, the trend toward larger, more efficient farms continues. Increased foreign competition, intensified since 1997, quickens the pace of change in farm size.

The South Korean market for meats continues to undergo considerable change. South Korea's marketing of pork and chicken meat was poorly developed until the 1990s. Pork, like beef, was sold thawed or frozen. Poultry meat has usually been sold fresh or chilled. Markets for specific cuts and for quality grades were largely absent, with meat sold in relatively undifferentiated form. This affected imports, since the international meat trade is increasingly concentrated in specific cuts and qualities. An undifferentiated retail market makes it more difficult to introduce cuts that usually sell at a higher price because consumers may not attach added value to a chilled product or to a cut designed to be easily used in a certain recipe. However, the lack of retail differentiation also limits the ability of domestic producers to add value through marketing specific cuts or degrees of freshness. Thus, the domestic industry shares with exporters an interest in intensifying and differentiating the marketing of meats in South Korea. In addition, South Korean consumers also have an interest in seeing more specific cuts in preparing certain dishes because they are increasingly pressed for time and interested in expanding the variety of foods they eat. The shift to a market in specific cuts will benefit imports of certain cuts, especially pork ribs and bellies, which are sometimes in short supply and priced above world market levels.

 

For more information, contact: John Dyck

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Updated date: June 22, 2009