APQA has requested that importers adhere to the traceability system for imported beef and pork.

 

Under effective statutes, various regulatory frameworks are established to protect consumers’ interests and public safety. Businesses dealing with relevant goods are required to comply with these regulations. However, in some cases, businesses may negligently fail to follow these regulations, even when penal provisions exist, especially if the competent government agency does not investigate violations. When such negligence becomes widespread, and the agency deems it necessary to strengthen the enforcement of a regulatory framework, they issue a letter urging strict compliance. Businesses should take such letters seriously because the agency may initiate a comprehensive investigation and impose penalties for any violations that remain uncorrected.

 

On Sep. 27, 2023, the Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency (APQA) issued the following letter after noticing that many transactions involving imported beef or pork intended food (including dressed carcasses, dressed meat, packed meat from dressed carcasses, and other by-products as specified by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs’ Ordinance) had not been reported through the traceability management system, MeatWatch. This non-compliance violated Article 16 of the LIVESTOCK AND LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS TRACEABILITY ACT (가축 및 축산물 이력관리에 관한 법률), which carries the potential for an administrative fine of up to 5 million won.


According to the LIVESTOCK AND LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS TRACEABILITY ACT, importers or sellers of imported food intending to import beef or pork must apply for a serial number allocation, affix the importation and distribution identification mark bearing the serial number to the relevant imported beef or pork, and include the serial number when filing an import declaration as required by the SPECIAL ACT ON IMPORTED FOOD SAFETY CONTROL. Since the import declaration certificate is a requirement checked by Customs, importers of beef or pork typically fulfill these obligations diligently. However, because reporting must be done after customs clearance, there can be instances of neglect. The letter serves as an alert from APQA for such cases of negligence.

 

The LIVESTOCK AND LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS TRACEABILITY ACT is not the sole statute regulating the traceability of imported goods. The traceability of certain imported agricultural products, fishery products, H sections, and more is also governed by the NOTIFICATION ON TRACEABILITY MANAGEMENT OF IMPORTED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS, ETC. (수입농산물등 유통이력관리에 관한 고시) under the ACT ON ORIGIN LABELING OF AGRICULTURAL AND FISHERY PRODUCTS (농수산물의 원산지 표시 등에 관한 법률), the NOTIFICATION ON TRACEABILITY MANAGEMENT OF IMPORTED FISHERY PRODUCTS (수입수산물 유통이력 관리에 관한 고시) under the FISHERY PRODUCTS DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AND SUPPORT ACT (수산물 유통의 관리 및 지원에 관한 법률), and the NOTIFICATION ON TRACEABILITY MANAGEMENT OF IMPORTED GOODS (수입물품 유통이력관리에 관한 고시) under the CUSTOMS ACT (관세법), respectively.

 

Importers of goods subject to traceability management should not forget to report the transactions settled after import through the relevant system:

·      For beef and pork: https://www.meatwatch.go.kr/cs/cpt/selectCnsmrMain.do

·      For agricultural products: https://www.naqs.go.kr/pass/frmprd/member/Login.do

·      For fishery products: https://www.nfqs.go.kr/imst/info/main

·      For H sections, steel flanges, and manhole cover: UNIPASS (https://unipass.customs.go.kr/csp/index.do)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Country of Origin (COO) Marking Requirements in South Korea

History and regulation of customs broker in Korea

New Method for Gathering Import/Export Declaration Data