President Lee Jae Myung and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong shake hands during a joint press conference on Sunday at the presidential office in Seoul. (Yonhap)
President Lee Jae Myung and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong shake hands during a joint press conference on Sunday at the presidential office in Seoul. (Yonhap)

South Korea has officially begun exporting beef and pork from Jeju Island to Singapore, following an agreement reached during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, last week.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said Sunday that exports of frozen pork and beef can begin immediately, marking a milestone for Korean livestock products.

The decision came after Singaporean authorities inspected slaughterhouses and processing facilities on Jeju in August and approved Korea’s hygiene and quarantine standards.

With this deal, Singapore becomes the sixth country to import Korean beef, joining Hong Kong, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos and the United Arab Emirates.

“The agreement reflects international recognition of Korea’s advanced quarantine system and hygiene management,” a ministry official said. “Given Singapore’s reliance on meat imports and its annual market growth of 5.5 percent, we expect Korean beef exports to expand steadily.”

As part of the negotiations, Korea also won approval to export processed egg products, including smoked eggs, to Singapore.


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