April 18, 2006

Suspected case of mad cow disease in Japan throws imports in limbo

A suspected case of mad cow disease in a 20-month-old steer in north-eastern Japan, if confirmed, could affect Japan's imports of US and Canadian beef, officials said Monday.

If confirmed, it would be one of the youngest cows to test positive for mad cow in the world. Young calves are said to be less vulnerable to mad cow disease and Japan has based import restrictions on the age of the cow when it is slaughtered.

The steer was slaughtered last week in Fukushima prefecture, some 240 kilometres north-east of Tokyo and was tested positive for the brain-wasting disease, according to the Agricultural Ministry.

Japan in December eased a two-year-old ban to allow imports of North America animals aged 20 months or younger which did not contain body parts thought at risk from mad cow dieases. The trade was again suspended after a US veal shipment was found to contain prohibited bones.

Meanwhile, Japanese officials said Canada's latest case of mad cow disease confirmed over the weekend would not influence the country's import policy.

A six-year-old dairy cow from British Columbia was tested positive for BSE when it had trouble walking, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. It was Canada's fifth confirmed case since May 2003.

Canadian beef exports to Japan have fallen to about 20 tonnes a week compared with 500 tonnes before the ban in 2003.

The decline was not as a result of inadequate supply but insufficient supply of documented animals meeting the 20-month age requirement, a spokesman for the Canada Beef Export Federation said.