South Korea was likely the largest importer of U.S. beef last year, emerging as the biggest overseas market for the food item.

According to data by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Sunday, South Korea imported over 253-thousand tons of U.S. beef from January to November last year, up 16 percent from a year earlier. 

That's 15-thousand tons more than the comparable figure for Japan, which was the top importer until 2020. 

South Korea's imports during the cited period amount to two-point-13 billion dollars, up 39 percent on-year. That's more than 400 million dollars higher than the figure for Japan. 

The figure for all of 2021 is likely to be larger than that for Japan, especially if the December data is included.  

South Korea banned beef imports from the U.S. in 2003 due to worries over mad cow disease and resumed in 2008. Imports have since increased sharply.