Japan                                    ...

Japan                                                                                            

Deal To Reopen Beef Trade May Be Near

Press reports indicate that Japan may agree to end its demands for 100-percent testing for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The USDA issued a statement at the end of the U.S./Japan Technical BSE Working Group meeting in Tokyo in which it said the meeting “provided a constructive framework for both sides to meet the shared commitment of utilizing the best science available internationally when addressing BSE issues to protect public and animal health while minimizing trade disruptions in beef and other ruminant products.” The statement didn’t address the testing issue. Industry analysts predict that an agreement will be reached on the basis of Japanese acceptance that the U.S. programs — including the removal of specific risk materials — protect consumers from infection, and the main question left to be resolved is the maximum age of the animals providing beef for Japan. The USDA also said that the Working Group has produced a report which “will serve as the basis for the discussions between the two governments to establish the terms by which beef trade will resume.”

Japan                                                                                            

Deal To Reopen Beef Trade May Be Near

Press reports indicate that Japan may agree to end its demands for 100-percent testing for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The USDA issued a statement at the end of the U.S./Japan Technical BSE Working Group meeting in Tokyo in which it said the meeting “provided a constructive framework for both sides to meet the shared commitment of utilizing the best science available internationally when addressing BSE issues to protect public and animal health while minimizing trade disruptions in beef and other ruminant products.” The statement didn’t address the testing issue. Industry analysts predict that an agreement will be reached on the basis of Japanese acceptance that the U.S. programs — including the removal of specific risk materials — protect consumers from infection, and the main question left to be resolved is the maximum age of the animals providing beef for Japan. The USDA also said that the Working Group has produced a report which “will serve as the basis for the discussions between the two governments to establish the terms by which beef trade will resume.”