G/SPS/N/KOR/564  
 
30 May 2017  
(17-2877) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
  NOTIFICATION  
1. Notifying Member: REPUBLIC OF KOREA  
If applicable, name of local government involved:  
2. Agency responsible: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety  
3. Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified in national 
schedules deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers should be provided in 
addition, where applicable): Food products  
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable : 
[X] All trading partners  
[ ] Specific regions or  countries:  
5. Title of the notified document: Proposed Amendments to the Standards and 
Specifications for Foods.  Language(s): Korean . Number of pages: 373 
http://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2017/SPS/KOR/17_2468_00_x.pdf  
6. Description of content: The proposed amendment seeks to:  
Revise the definition and standard for carbon isotope ratio of "Honey produced by 
sugar -fed honey bees."  
Establish and revise the  "General Test Methods ". 
Expand and revise the list of "Raw mate rials approved for use in foods ". 
 Addition of flower, leaf and stem of "Rose of sharon (Hibiscus syriacus L.)", stem of 
Common ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), Porous -head eelpout 
(Bothroc ara hollandi), etc.  
 Revise the names of plant -origin raw materials according to the Korean Plant Names 
Index of the Korea Forest Service (KFS).  
Establish the maximum residue limit for a newly registered pesticide (Fenoxasulfone) in 
foods, and expand the r ange of target agricultural products for 32 pesticides.  
Harmonize the use of standards for  food additives with the "Standards and Specifications 
for Food Additives" .  
Revise the supplementary provision of Ministry of Food and Drug Safety Notice 
No. 2016-154 to allow the application of amended regulations before the enforcement 
date. 
7. Objective and rationale: [X]  food safety, [  ] animal health, [  ] plant protection, 
[ ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease, [  ] protect territory from 
other dam age from pests.  G/SPS/N/KOR/564  
 
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  8. Is there a relevant international standard? If so, identify the standard:  
[ ] Codex Alimentarius Commission (e.g.  title or serial number of Codex 
standard or related text) :  
[ ] World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) (e.g.  Terrestr ial or Aquatic 
Animal Health Code, chapter number) :  
[ ] International Plant Protection Convention (e.g.  ISPM number) :  
[X] None  
Does this proposed regulation conform to the relevant international standard?   
[ ] Yes   [  ] No 
If no, describe, whenever poss ible, how and why it deviates from the 
international standard:  
9. Other relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available: 
Ministry of Food and Drug Safety   Advance Notice No. 2017 -168, 17 Apr 2017  (available 
in Korean)  
10. Proposed date o f adoption (dd/mm/yy) : To be determined.  
Proposed date of publication (dd/mm/yy) : To be determined.  
11. Proposed date of entry into force: [  ] Six months from date of publication , 
and/or  (dd/mm/yy) : To be determined.  
[ ] Trade facilitating measure  
12. Final date for comments: [X]  Sixty days from the date of circulation of the 
notification and/or (dd/mm/yy) : 29 July 2017  
Agency or authority designated to handle comments: [  ] National Notification 
Authority, [X]  National Enquiry Point. Address, fax number and e -mail address 
(if available) of other body:  
International Cooperation Office  
Ministry of  Food and Drug safety  
#187 Osongsaengmyeong2 -ro, Osong -eup, Heungdoek -gu Cheongju -si, 
Chungcheongbuk -do 
363-700, Korea  
Tel: +(82 43) 719 1554  
Fax: +(82 43) 719 15 50 
E-mail: wtokfda@korea.kr  
13. Text(s)  available from: [  ] National Notification Authority, [X]  National Enquiry 
Point. Address, fax number and e -mail address (if available) of other body:   
Documents are available from the Ministry of   Food and Drug Safe ty website at  
http://www.mfds.go.kr .  
Also available from:   
International Cooperation Office  
Ministry of  Food and Drug Safety  
#187 Osongsaengmyeong2 -ro, Osong -eup, Heungdoek -gu Cheongju -si, 
Chungcheongbuk -do 
Tel: +(82 43) 719 1554  
Fax: +(82 43) 719 1550  
E-mail: wtokfda@korea.kr