Ten Prefectures Will Fund 100 Percent BSE Testing Of Younger Animals
Japan
Ten Prefectures Will Fund 100 Percent BSE Testing Of Younger Animals
At least ten of Japan’s local governments will fund 100 percent BSE testing of younger animals when the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) ends its funding for 100 percent BSE testing of its domestic cattle under 21 months of age at the end of July 2008. Only pressure from consumers and politicians had prevented the national government from ending such funding earlier. Despite the manifestly unscientific nature of testing younger animals, 10 of Japan’s 42 prefectures have announced that they will provide funding to continue the testing and others are considering it. The 10 prefectures — Hokkaido, Iwate, Gifu, Mie, Fukuoka, Oita, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, Yamagata and Nagasaki — are all important cattle-producing regions.
When the ministry made a formal announcement that it would end funding for testing (it will still fund testing for animals of 21 months of age and older) in Sept. 2007, it asked the prefectures not to continue BSE testing on younger animals. It is understood that the 10 prefectures will continue testing younger animals to build consumer confidence in the safety of Japanese beef.
MHLW continues to work at educating the Japanese public about the science surrounding BSE. As part of this effort it conducted risk communication sessions this month and last to explain why blanket testing has no scientific validity.
Sign Up To Showcase Company Products At Joint Industry Trade Shows
USMEF will feature new pork and beef menu ideas for foodservice and merchandising tips for retailers at the 34th Japan Meat Industry Showcase, the largest trade show specializing in meat products in Japan, April 9-11, at the Tokyo Big Site
The Japan Meat Industry Showcase is held jointly with Fabex, a trade show specializing in deli foods, and together they attract more than 60,000 meat and food industry reps — traders, retailers, wholesalers, food processors, HRI buyers, and anyone in the industry looking for meat products to fulfill their current demands or create new demands through innovation. USMEF-Japan is inviting more than 400 key industry buyers and target accounts.
USMEF Members can have their sausage and other eligible items on display and cooked and distributed as samples at the USMEF pavilion. Participation will expose member products to thousands of qualified buyers and elicit valuable feedback at no cost to the member except for the samples and company literature for the pavilion.
The USMEF pavilion will also have a limited number of booths complete with refrigerator or freezer and a cooking plate or microwave available for our members at no charge. Participants will need to supply and prepare samples at the booth on their own and take all responsibility for sample shipping and ensure proper shipping conditions with their shipping company. Booths will be distributed on a first come, first served basis.
For participation please contact Tammy Connolly (tconnolly@usmef.org) as soon as possible and by Jan. 21 at the latest.
For more information on the trade show, contact USMEF-Japan’s Senior Marketing Driector Takemichi Yamashoji at tyamashoji@usmef-ja.org or +81-3-3584-3911.
Japan
Ten Prefectures Will Fund 100 Percent BSE Testing Of Younger Animals
At least ten of Japan’s local governments will fund 100 percent BSE testing of younger animals when the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) ends its funding for 100 percent BSE testing of its domestic cattle under 21 months of age at the end of July 2008. Only pressure from consumers and politicians had prevented the national government from ending such funding earlier. Despite the manifestly unscientific nature of testing younger animals, 10 of Japan’s 42 prefectures have announced that they will provide funding to continue the testing and others are considering it. The 10 prefectures — Hokkaido, Iwate, Gifu, Mie, Fukuoka, Oita, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, Yamagata and Nagasaki — are all important cattle-producing regions.
When the ministry made a formal announcement that it would end funding for testing (it will still fund testing for animals of 21 months of age and older) in Sept. 2007, it asked the prefectures not to continue BSE testing on younger animals. It is understood that the 10 prefectures will continue testing younger animals to build consumer confidence in the safety of Japanese beef.
MHLW continues to work at educating the Japanese public about the science surrounding BSE. As part of this effort it conducted risk communication sessions this month and last to explain why blanket testing has no scientific validity.
Sign Up To Showcase Company Products At Joint Industry Trade Shows
USMEF will feature new pork and beef menu ideas for foodservice and merchandising tips for retailers at the 34th Japan Meat Industry Showcase, the largest trade show specializing in meat products in Japan, April 9-11, at the Tokyo Big Site
The Japan Meat Industry Showcase is held jointly with Fabex, a trade show specializing in deli foods, and together they attract more than 60,000 meat and food industry reps — traders, retailers, wholesalers, food processors, HRI buyers, and anyone in the industry looking for meat products to fulfill their current demands or create new demands through innovation. USMEF-Japan is inviting more than 400 key industry buyers and target accounts.
USMEF Members can have their sausage and other eligible items on display and cooked and distributed as samples at the USMEF pavilion. Participation will expose member products to thousands of qualified buyers and elicit valuable feedback at no cost to the member except for the samples and company literature for the pavilion.
The USMEF pavilion will also have a limited number of booths complete with refrigerator or freezer and a cooking plate or microwave available for our members at no charge. Participants will need to supply and prepare samples at the booth on their own and take all responsibility for sample shipping and ensure proper shipping conditions with their shipping company. Booths will be distributed on a first come, first served basis.
For participation please contact Tammy Connolly (tconnolly@usmef.org) as soon as possible and by Jan. 21 at the latest.
For more information on the trade show, contact USMEF-Japan’s Senior Marketing Driector Takemichi Yamashoji at tyamashoji@usmef-ja.org or +81-3-3584-3911.