TOKYO - U.S. meat company IBP Inc said that it may need to recall its beef shipments to South Korea if reports are true that its U.S. shipments to that country tested positive for E.coli bacteria.
An official of IBP's Japan branch said the company's meat experts are now in South Korea for an investigation, working in cooperation with the South Korean government and the USDA.
"If the investigation verifies that the product in question provided by our company tests positive for E.Coli bacteria, we will have to ship back the product to the U.S. or will have to dispose of the product," the official said.
The official added that the product in question has not been distributed in the South Korean market yet and has had no impact on consumers' health.
South Korea's Agriculture Ministry said on Sunday it had asked the United States to suspend frozen beef exports from a plant owned by IBP Inc in Dakota City, Nebraska, after saying it had detected the E.Coli bacteria in an 18.18 tonne beef shipment from the plant.
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