Minister Song Mi-ryong of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said on the 8th, "Despite the mutual tariffs imposed by the Trump administration in the U.S., our government's K-Food Plus (agriculture + machinery) export target of $14 billion remains unchanged."
Minister Song said at a meeting with reporters after the 'U.S. mutual tariff response meeting for food export corporations' held at the aT Center in Yangjae-dong, Seoul, "By the end of the first quarter, K-Food Plus export performance reached $3.2 billion, the highest ever."
Minister Song noted, "The U.S. tariff policies may reduce exports to the U.S., but there is room for additional negotiations with the U.S. on this matter," adding, "The U.S. market accounts for 16% of K-Food Plus exports. We will work hard to achieve our $14 billion target by diversifying our export markets."
Minister Song reported that representatives of food export corporations attending the meeting stated that there have been no direct damages so far due to the U.S. tariff measures, but expressed concerns about reduced consumer demand due to price increases. Minister Song said, "The attending corporations requested government-level policy support to lower export prices," and added, "They requested the expansion of export vouchers, trade finance support, and integrated marketing for exploring export avenues, along with providing information on export countries."
Regarding the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) mentioning Korea's non-tariff barriers such as age restrictions on imported beef and limitations on genetically modified organisms (LMOs) in its recent NTE report, Minister Song stated, "Until now, the U.S. has not specifically mentioned non-tariff barriers. From the government's perspective, we will adhere to the principle of prioritizing public health and safety while doing our utmost to ensure that the international competitiveness of our agriculture is not compromised."