South Korea will continue to ban the import of US beef and poultry, but will start importing US oranges by the end of the year or 2005, the foreign ministry said on Friday. South Korea bought more than $700 million worth annually of US beef until the first US case of "mad cow" disease in late 2003. It was the US' third-biggest beef importer. Cho participated in talks with US trade officials on Wednesday and Thursday in Seoul.
The countries hold regular quarterly meetings to discuss trade issues. Cho said South Korea would resume the import of US oranges in coming months.
In April, South Korea banned orange imports from the Tulare and Fresno areas of California due to the presence of fungi. Shipments from the two areas made up more than four-fifths of South Korea's total annual orange imports.