Officials said U.S. Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture Charles Lambert made it clear that the U.S. wants its beef traded without restrictions on meat parts or age of the animal slaughtered.

The stance reflects a decision by the World Organization for Animal Health in late May that gave the U.S. "controlled risk" status in terms of mad cow disease. The designation technically allows the U.S. to export most cow parts, including skulls, vertebrae and brains, if they are from animals under 30 months old.

Only tonsils and a portion of the intestines are banned because they pose the greatest risk of transmitting mad cow disease to humans.

South Korea banned American beef after a case of the disease was confirmed in the U.S. in December 2003.

The technical consultation meeting held at the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service south of Seoul was convened to draft a new sanitary and phytosanitary standard (SPS) to replace the one agreed upon in January 2006.

Source: Yahoo!7