Seoul | Reuters — South Korea has lifted a ban on animal feed additive zilpaterol in beef, a food ministry official said Tuesday.
Seoul had earlier flagged that it intended to ease its zero-tolerance policy on zilpaterol-based drugs, such as Merck’s Zilmax.
The official confirmed that imports of beef muscle with one part per billion (ppb) of zilpaterol, five ppb in beef liver and 10 ppb in beef kidney had been approved as of late last month.
South Korea suspended some U.S. beef imports for more than two months last year after traces of zilpaterol were found in two shipments.
Many other Asian and European countries also ban the additive due to concerns about its side effects.
— Reporting for Reuters by Meeyoung Cho in Seoul.
