February 17, 2010

Japan suspends Austrian pork imports

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan (MAFF) said Tuesday (Feb 16) that it has suspended imports of Austrian pork and pork products.

MAFF took the action after Austrian sausages made of pork and beef were found in quarantine procedures for meat products shipped from the country. Since January 2001, Japan has been banning beef imports from Austria following an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in Europe.

The ministry asked the Austrian government to investigate why the pork beef sausages were included in the shipments.

In 2009, Japan imported 5,082 tonnes of pork from Austria, or about 0.7% of its overall pork imports.

The ministry also suspended import procedures for the sausages, which were processed and shipped by Huetthaler KG. The Austrian government approved Japan-bound exports of the sausages on January 12.