Asia Pacific | Beef's return spikes Japanese restaurant's salesSales at the S...

Asia Pacific

Beef's return spikes Japanese restaurant's sales
Sales at the Sukiya fast food chain jumped 10.2 percent last month after the restaurants, which are operated by Zensho Co., reintroduced beef and rice bowls, the Japanese equivalent of the hamburger. The beef dish was introduced at mid-month, so the sales effect is even more dramatic than it first appears. By contrast, a competing chain, Yoshinoya D&C, Co., decided against reintroducing beef bowls made with pricier Australian beef, and saw its September sales plummet 31 percent.

STRONG MEAT EXPORTS
Australia continues to ship more beef to Korea and Japan.

Europe

OLDER BEEF BEEF
Britain's National Beef Association calls for immediate lifting of ban on over-30-month beef in Northern Ireland.

Americas

BSE petition heads to Ottawa
A petition bearing the signatures of over 100,000 Canadians will land on the desk of Deputy Prime Minister Ann McLellan next week, demanding that the federal government redouble its efforts to open the U.S. border to Canadian beef.

Brazil's state bank extends financing to its largest meat processor
Brazil's Social and Economic Development Bank (BNDES) has provided $17.7 million in funding to Perdigao SA, the country's largest food supplier, to finance the modernization and expansion of its frozen chicken and pork operations. The funds offset a substantial portion of the $28.8 million the company has invested in six plants in five states. The subsidy was approved in light of rapidly increasing export demand for the company's value-added meat products and the addition of at least 2,000 jobs attributable directly to the expansion. The expansion took place in 2003.

USA

Mad-cow talks may spur U.S. beef exports to Japan
U.S. and Japanese officials held "constructive" talks in Fort Collins this week on adopting new testing guidelines for mad cow disease that may open the door for some U.S. beef exports to Japan, a Japanese agriculture official said Wednesday.

Bovine genome sequenced and available online
USDA Undersecretary Joseph J. Jen says the first draft of the bovine genome sequence has been deposited into free public databases for use by biomedical and agricultural researchers.

FSIS announces final amendment to nutrition labeling rules
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service approved a final amendment to its nutrition labeling regulations. The amendment permits nutrient content claims on the labeling of multi-serve "meal-type" meat and poultry products. Previously, FSIS only required nutrient content information for single-serve meat and poultry products.

Some like it haute: Restaurant to serve $100 Philly cheesesteak
Anyone hungry for a Philly cheesesteak stacked with, say, Kobe beef, melted Taleggio cheese, shaved truffles, sautéed foie gras, caramelized onions and heirloom shaved tomatoes? Well, it's yours for $100 at Barclay Prime, a new Philadelphia restaurant that opened Tuesday.

FOOD SAFETY PARTNERSHIPS
USDA announces cooperative partnerships for meat safety.

MOVING ON
The American Meat Institute prepares to move to a new office in Washington, DC, this week.

Asia Pacific

Beef's return spikes Japanese restaurant's sales
Sales at the Sukiya fast food chain jumped 10.2 percent last month after the restaurants, which are operated by Zensho Co., reintroduced beef and rice bowls, the Japanese equivalent of the hamburger. The beef dish was introduced at mid-month, so the sales effect is even more dramatic than it first appears. By contrast, a competing chain, Yoshinoya D&C, Co., decided against reintroducing beef bowls made with pricier Australian beef, and saw its September sales plummet 31 percent.

STRONG MEAT EXPORTS
Australia continues to ship more beef to Korea and Japan.

Europe

OLDER BEEF BEEF
Britain's National Beef Association calls for immediate lifting of ban on over-30-month beef in Northern Ireland.

Americas

BSE petition heads to Ottawa
A petition bearing the signatures of over 100,000 Canadians will land on the desk of Deputy Prime Minister Ann McLellan next week, demanding that the federal government redouble its efforts to open the U.S. border to Canadian beef.

Brazil's state bank extends financing to its largest meat processor
Brazil's Social and Economic Development Bank (BNDES) has provided $17.7 million in funding to Perdigao SA, the country's largest food supplier, to finance the modernization and expansion of its frozen chicken and pork operations. The funds offset a substantial portion of the $28.8 million the company has invested in six plants in five states. The subsidy was approved in light of rapidly increasing export demand for the company's value-added meat products and the addition of at least 2,000 jobs attributable directly to the expansion. The expansion took place in 2003.

USA

Mad-cow talks may spur U.S. beef exports to Japan
U.S. and Japanese officials held "constructive" talks in Fort Collins this week on adopting new testing guidelines for mad cow disease that may open the door for some U.S. beef exports to Japan, a Japanese agriculture official said Wednesday.

Bovine genome sequenced and available online
USDA Undersecretary Joseph J. Jen says the first draft of the bovine genome sequence has been deposited into free public databases for use by biomedical and agricultural researchers.

FSIS announces final amendment to nutrition labeling rules
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service approved a final amendment to its nutrition labeling regulations. The amendment permits nutrient content claims on the labeling of multi-serve "meal-type" meat and poultry products. Previously, FSIS only required nutrient content information for single-serve meat and poultry products.

Some like it haute: Restaurant to serve $100 Philly cheesesteak
Anyone hungry for a Philly cheesesteak stacked with, say, Kobe beef, melted Taleggio cheese, shaved truffles, sautéed foie gras, caramelized onions and heirloom shaved tomatoes? Well, it's yours for $100 at Barclay Prime, a new Philadelphia restaurant that opened Tuesday.

FOOD SAFETY PARTNERSHIPS
USDA announces cooperative partnerships for meat safety.

MOVING ON
The American Meat Institute prepares to move to a new office in Washington, DC, this week.