A leading local daily says that starting next year, consumers will be able to see imported rice in local discount stores and supermarkets alongside domestic offerings.

Quoting the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Korea Rural Economic Institute, the Donga-ilbo newspaper said Wednesday that the American brands Calos and Gokuhoros and the Chinese brand Jilin Dongbuk would go on sale in local retail stores beginning next year, following the conclusion of ongoing rice negotiations.

The report said that South Korea would have to allow the domestic sale of imported rice even if the rice negotiations are not settled because of international trade regulations that require Seoul to grant the same treatment to imported rice as to locally produced varieties.

Under the WTO's minimum market access scheme, South Korea has been importing a certain amount of foreign rice since 1995 in return for delaying the full liberalization of rice market.

The imported rice, however, has so far only been used to make rice snacks or rice noodles, and not sold for home cooking for fear of protests from local farmers.