April 28, 2011
South Korean Delegation Buys 69 Florida Thoroughbreds for $1.3 Million
Last month’s purchase of 69 Florida Thoroughbreds by a South Korean delegation yielded $1.3 million for Florida horse breeders. The sale is part of an ongoing multiyear relationship between the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) and race horse groups in South Korea.
The delegation -- made up of representatives from the Seoul Racehorse Owners Association and the Korean Racing Authority -- was attending the 2011 Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company in Ocala on April 18-21.
The South Korean delegation was invited by FDACS and the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association, who collaborated to secure funding from the U.S. Livestock Genetics Export, Inc., to sponsor some of the events.
FDACS has been conducting trade missions with South Korea since 2002, and has been actively recruiting buyers from the country’s two main racing areas, Seoul and Busan. Some of the South Korean buyers who attended the April sale will return to Ocala for the second Sale of Two-Year-Olds on June 21 and 22.
The Korean government has price controls on the amount that can be spent on any one horse. Sales in 2009 were 69 head for $1.1 million, and in 2010 were 137 head for $2.5 million.
