July 19, 2012

Japan commission to consider easing restriction on US beef

Japan's Food Safety Commission will hold discussions on July 24 to decide on the government's proposal for less restrictive measures on US beef imports, according to commission official, Makato Osone.

A 13-member committee led by Nihon University Professor Takeo Sakai will hold its seventh meeting since the government asked it to assess the health risks of relaxing restrictions imposed to safeguard against mad-cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, Osone said.

Japan restricts US beef imports to cattle 20 months old or younger as older animals are at higher risk of having the brain-wasting disease. The regulation was put in place before Japan resumed purchases in 2005 of American beef, which had been banned since the first discovery of the disease in the US in 2003. Japan also requires US shippers to remove materials such as spinal cords from all cattle of any age before exports.

"The committee members will begin wrapping up their discussion on the issue over the past seven months," Osone said by phone. "If they don't make decisions in the gathering next week, they may hold another meeting in August."

Japan's health ministry proposed in December to raise the age limit to 30 months, widening opportunities for US beef shippers such as Tyson to boost sales to Japan, the largest export market before the ban.

The Food Safety Commission must confirm that any change in policy won't increase human health risks before the government decides to ease restrictions, Osone said.

Japan's ban on US beef prompted restaurant chain operator, Yoshinoya, to suspend sales of its "gyudon" beef bowl. The US was the largest beef exporter to Japan after Australia in 2003, supplying 267,583 tonnes worth 128.5 billion yen (US$1.6 billion), according to data from the agriculture ministry.

Cattle futures for October delivery slid 0.2% to US$1.1975 a pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. US beef sales to Japan, excluding variety meat, or offal, will likely expand to 150,000 tonnes this year from 120,605 tonnes in 2011, Philip Seng, president and CEO of the US Meat Export Federation, said in Tokyo on April 11.