Cancellation of the Netherlands Pavilion at the Korea International Livestock Expo 2022
The recent Omicron wave in South Korea and the increased concerns under exhibitors and participants of the Korea International Livestock Expo (KISTOCK) 2022 led to the cancellation of the Netherlands Pavilion.
The KISTOCK, one of Korea's prominent livestock expos, will resume for its 11th event on 16 February for three days. Since the last KISTOCK in 2017, this exhibition was on hold due to the outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in Korea and the limitations caused by COVID-19. Although the KISTOCK organizers are determined to proceed with this expo, the size of the event and the number of participating companies are much less than the previous one. Furthermore, there is little hope of active participation of livestock farms and farmers due to the recent nationwide outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in poultry farms and the rapid spread of ASF in the northern and central part of the country. As these participants are the main target of this expo, their absence will most probably affect this event's effectiveness and added value.
Despite the intentions and efforts of the Netherlands Agricultural Network at the Netherlands embassy in Seoul to facilitate the participating company with the Netherlands Pavilion, the reduced size of the expo, the absence and withdrawal of other international pavilions, and the limited expected attendance of the target group led to the decision of the cancellation of the Netherlands Pavilion this week.
The embassy strives to organize an optimal opportunity for the industry to do business with Korean partners. For questions, ideas or suggestions, please feel free to contact us at SEO-LNV@minbuza.nl.