South Korea’s prime minister on Wednesday attempted to allay public fears by buying 12kg of US sirloin steak. The well-publicised gesture took place as protests against US beef imports intensified to include Catholic priests, Buddhist monks and carworkers at Hyundai.

The furore about US beef shipments that has hamstrung the new conservative government shows few signs of abating even after a deal between Seoul and Washington that led to US meat flying off the shelves this week.