韩国五年来首次进口美国带骨牛肉

自从韩国大约在5年前禁止美国牛肉进口以来，首批美国带骨牛肉运抵韩国。虽然大规模街头抗议进口美国牛肉的示威已经平息，但是针对恢复美国牛肉进口协议的愤怒情绪仍然存在。

South Korean quarantine inspectors began the process Tuesday of admitting beef ribs from the United States for sale in the country's markets. The beef arrived earlier by airplane, ending a total absence of bone-in US beef in South Korea that lasted nearly five years.

韩国检疫人员星期二开始检疫程序，以批准美国带骨牛排在韩国市场销售。早些时候空运抵达韩国的这批牛肉，结束了近5年来在韩国根本无法买到美国带骨牛肉的局面。

South Korea used to be the world's third leading importer of US beef. However, it banned US beef altogether in late 2003, after a single US animal was discovered to have "mad cow disease," a fatal condition which decays the brain. Doctors say it is possible, but unlikely, to contract a human form of the disease by eating meat from infected animals.

韩国曾经是美国牛肉第三大进口国，但2003年末，在发现一头美国牛感染上疯牛病之后，韩国全面禁止美国牛肉进口。医生们说，人类有可能通过食用病牛肉而感染上导致脑部病变的致命疯牛病，但是可能性并不大。

US authorities have always maintained US beef is safe. There has never been a proven case of US beef infecting consumers with brain disease. South Korea agreed to a limited resumption of boneless beef last year, then re-imposed the ban after some shipments were found to contain bone fragments.

美国有关当局一直坚持说，美国牛肉是安全的，从来没有一个证明消费者因为食用美国牛肉而感染疯牛病的病例。韩国去年同意有限度地恢复进口不带骨美国牛肉，但是在一些交货牛肉上发现带有骨头碎片之后，韩国重新禁止进口美国牛肉。

A public uproar followed South Korean President Lee Myung-bak's April deal with President Bush to resume nearly all beef imports. Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets for weeks of nightly demonstrations that occasionally turned into violent clashes. Protesters accused Mr. Lee of treating public health too casually, but the beef issue served as a hub for a host of other political complaints against his administration.

韩国总统李明博和美国总统布什4月签署协议，同意几乎全面恢复美国牛肉的进口，这导致韩国爆发骚乱。成千上万的示威者好几个星期每天晚上走上街头举行抗议，抗议活动有时演变成暴力冲突。示威者指责李明博罔顾公共健康。不过牛肉问题仅仅是示威者提出的一个中心议题，他们还抨击李明博政府的其他各种政策。

The protests have ebbed due to a firmer approach by police, and moves by South Korea and the United States to amend the deal. Tuesday's beef shipment was plastered with stickers certifying the meat was derived from cattle younger than two and a half years old-- widely seen as having a lower risk of mad cow disease.

在韩国警方采取更为强硬的手段，以及韩国和美国修改了有关牛肉进口协议之后，街头示威逐渐平息。星期二运抵韩国的美国带骨牛肉带有标签，证明这些都是来自年龄不到2岁半的牛的牛肉。人们普遍认为，小牛感染疯牛病的风险较低。

Park Chang-kyu runs a beef store here in Seoul, and started selling warehoused U.S. beef last month. He says sales figures belie many of the protesters' complaints. He says around July first, South Koreans nationwide started buying about 400 kilograms of beef a day. Now, they are up to buying three ton a day. He says he has been getting up to forty telephone calls a day requesting so-called "LA Kalbi," or U.S. beef with bones.

朴钟圭(音) 在首尔开了一家牛肉铺子，从上个月开始卖仓库存有的牛肉。他说，销售量跟很多示威者所抱怨的情况并不相符。他说，大约在7月1日，韩国各地消费者开始一天购买大约4百公斤的牛肉，现在全国各地的销售量达到3吨。他一天要接多达40个电话，问他是否卖美国带骨牛肉。

Park says at first, he got lots of protest calls - including threats to blow up his store. Nowadays, those have eased off.

朴钟圭说，开始时他接到很多抗议电话，包括威胁要炸毁他的店铺的电话，不过现在这类电话已经不多了。

A portion of Tuesday's US beef shipment may be ready for store shelves in as few as three days. Inspectors say they may spend up to 18 days examining certain cuts about which consumers have expressed the most concern.

星期二抵达韩国的美国带骨牛肉的一部分有可能仅三天之内就会在商店上架出售。不过检疫人员说，他们也许会花多达18天的时间检查某些部位的牛肉，消费者对这些部位的牛肉表达了最多的担心。