March 17, 2004

 

 

Japan Insistent On US Cattle Test Demand
 

Japan is not willing to compromise on its demand that the United States tests all export-bound cattle for mad cow disease.

 

Japan, which bought $1.4 billion worth of American beef last year, halted imports after the United States discovered its first case of mad cow disease last December.

 

"Japan's view remains unchanged in wanting the United States to test all cattle slaughtered for export to Japan," a farm ministry official said.

 

A high-ranking U.S. trade official warned Japan on Tuesday that legal action could not be ruled out if disagreement continued over the best way to prevent the spread of the brain-wasting disease, formally called bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

 

"We'll look at whatever options we have to at the appropriate time," said Allen Johnson, the top U.S. agriculture trade negotiator, when asked by reporters about possible involvement of the World Trade Organisation.

 

The Japanese official said he could not comment on Johnson's remark, but said similar remarks had been made by senior U.S. officials before.

 

"In (Japan's) view, this is not a trade issue, it is a question of food safety," he said.

 

He said Japan will continue to ask the United States both to test all cattle slaughtered for export to Japan and to remove all risky parts suspected of causing the disease.

 

The United States has refused to agree to blanket testing, saying it would be too expensive and would not be justified on scientific grounds.

 

A rare human form of BSE, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD), can result from eating contaminated animal products.

 

The illness has been linked to around 130 deaths, mostly in Britain, but none in Japan.

 

Japan last week confirmed its 11th case of mad cow since the disease was first reported in the country in September 2001.