October 26, 2005

US senators seek tariffs on Japan for beef ban
 

US senators are backing legislation that would impose trade sanctions on Japan if it does not lift its ban on US beef by the end of the year.

Sens. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Pat Roberts, R-Kan., are scheduled to introduce the bill on the Senate floor Wednesday, according to a joint statement released Tuesday.

Another 18 other senators have signed the proposed legislation as co-sponsors.

Japan has banned US beef for nearly two years. A Japanese government commission again postponed recommending a lifting of the ban when it met Monday.

Japan, before it banned US beef in December 2003, was the largest export market for the US, buying about US$1.4 billion worth of beef a year. Japan banned US beef immediately after the US announced its first discovery of mad cow disease.

Conrad and Roberts estimated the losses higher at US$3.14 billion, while National Cattleman's Beef Association vice president Jay Truitt estimated the losses at as much as US$6 billion a year.