China's partial reopening of trade access for Canadian beef will add pressure on South Korea to ease its import restrictions, Canada's trade minister and industry officials said.

The deal with China leaves South Korea as the only country to maintain its ban Canadian beef after an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy disease in 2003. It is expected to push Seoul toward resolving a dispute with Canada that's currently before the World Trade Organization.

China agreed to accept Canadian boneless beef from cattle under 30 months of age and beef tallow, as a first step to full market access.

Japan also maintains restrictions but accepts Canadian beef from cattle under 21 months.

"If you look around and you see that everybody around you accepts the science and you aren't, you're looking increasingly isolated and it's hard for it to be taken seriously as a health or sanitary action," said Canada's International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan in an interview with Reuters. "It begins to be seen as a transparent trade barrier action."

South Korea and Canada, the world's third-largest beef exporter, are preparing written answers to questions from a WTO panel. The Canadian Cattlemen's Association said earlier this week Korea is signaling it would be open to a negotiated settlement instead.

"Every time we get one of these markets open, it adds to the momentum and China was particularly important on that front," said John Masswohl, director of government and international relations for the Cattlemen's Association. "Now Korea stands alone."

Canada is the first country affected by BSE to regain access to China, giving it a competitive advantage over the United States.

Van Loan said he did not expect any breakthrough with Japan on Canadian beef imports over the weekend, saying the G20 meetings in Toronto were not the forum for resolving bilateral trade disputes.

Canada's initial access to China is worth an estimated C$60 million ($58 million), with tallow used in industrial frying the most valuable part. With full beef access, China's imports could be worth C$110 million ($106 million), beef officials said.

Those sales will help narrow the spread between Canadian and U.S. beef prices and give Canadian exporters a head start in establishing trade relationships, Masswohl said.

Canada and China have not set a timetable for fully opening Chinese market access, he said.

China's growth gives Canadian beef exporters "an incredible opportunity," the Canadian Meat Council said in a statement.

When China was last open to Canadian beef, in 2002, it imported only C$7.1 million worth of product, according to Canada Beef Export Federation data.

"The fact that China was small before BSE still doesn't mean this isn't a big deal. It is a big deal," said Kevin Grier, senior market analyst at the George Morris Centre. "Look what they've done in (importing) pork over the last few years. It's become a major market."

China had offered before to resume trade in Canadian under-30-month beef, but Canada refused without a commitment to move to full access, Masswohl said.

Chinese officials will inspect Canadian beef plants this weekend and the first Canadian beef exports in 7 years could move to China later this summer, Masswohl said. (Reuters)