Japanese and US officials in Tokyo have reached a framework agreement that should permit the resumption of beef trade between the two countries.
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The agreement was reached after three days of prolonged negotiations to determine the conditions under which trade will be resumed. Japan banned imports of US beef last December following the discovery of a single case of BSE in Washington state.
The US Department of Agriculture said trade between the two countries will resume following completion of regulatory processes in both countries. Under terms of the agreement the US will be permitted to sell beef to Japanese importers from animals below 21 months of age, and specified risk materials, such as spinal cords, must be removed from all animals.
“The agreement reached in Tokyo will enable our beef trade to resume under a special marketing program. We then will review that program after six months of operation, with a view toward returning trade to more normal patterns,” said US agriculture secretary Ann Veneman.
Until the trade ban was imposed, Japan was the largest market for US beef and beef products with sales in 2003 before the ban was imposed exceeding US$1.7bn. Exports in total account for well over 10% of the total value of US beef output.
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By GlobalDataThe agreement was welcomed by J. Patrick Boyle, president of the American Meat Institute.
“We value the Japanese market and look forward to the opportunity to provide our beef products to Japanese consumers in the near future,” Boyle said.
Veneman said the US team of trade negotiators would now head to South Korea, the number three market for US beef, and then to “other important markets in the region to discuss market openings”.
