January 7, 2004

Japan Minister To Discuss Beef Ban With US This Week

Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Shoichi Nakagawa will discuss with the U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman the Japanese ban on U.S. beef imports this week, government officials said Wednesday.

Nakagawa is scheduled to leave for Washington later in the day for a two-day visit.

He is also expected to meet U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and Commerce Secretary Donald Evans.

Nakagawa indicated Tuesday that he will call on the United States to take steps to ensure the safety of American beef following the discovery of the first case of mad cow disease in the U.S.

Japan imposed the import ban immediately after the U.S. announced the discovery of a cow with mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), in late December.

The U.S. has called on Japan to lift the import ban, but Tokyo is urging Washington to test all cattle as Japan does to ensure that they are free from the disease.

Mad cow disease was first diagnosed in Britain in 1986. A fatal and incurable human disease, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, is believed to be caused by eating neural tissue from cattle with BSE.

Japan is the biggest overseas market for American beef. The U.S. exported $1.03 billion worth of beef, veal, prepared beef products and variety meats to Japan in 2002, accounting for about 32% of its total exports, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.