Korea has suspended beef imports from Brazil due to fears of mad cow disease according to Valor, a Brazilian economic daily, on Tuesday.

The Korean authorities could not be reached for confirmation Wednesday, a national holiday for the presidential election.

South Korea became the sixth nation to ban Brazilian beef imports after China, Japan, South Africa, Egypt and Saudi Arabia after confirmation of a 2010 case of atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, in Parana state by Brazil’s agriculture ministry last week.

The Brazilian authorities said the 13-year-old animal had tested positive for the causal agent for BSE, a protein called a prion, which can arise spontaneously in elderly cattle. Such a case is referred to as atypical BSE.

The World Animal Health Organization issued a statement maintaining Brazil’s status as a country with “insignificant risk” of mad cow disease. The Korean authorities allegedly put a ban on imports of Brazilian beef based on the organization’s statement.

A similar case of atypical BSE occurred in the U.S. in April, but the Korean government did not suspend U.S. beef imports as the U.S. government promptly proved the safety of its exported beef.

According to industry reports, Korea imported 1 million tons of beef from Brazil in the first nine months this year, and all beef imports from Brazil are processed meat.

Brazil is the biggest beef exporter in the world. Russia is the biggest Brazilian beef importer, followed by Hong Kong, Egypt and Chile.

By Seo Jee-yeon and news reports
(jyseo@heraldcorp.com)