Japan nears decision on U.S. beef imports

Japan nears decision on U.S. beef imports    A Japanese government panel ruled Monday that the risk of human infection from bovine spongiform encaphalopathy (BSE), or “mad cow” disease, in U.S. beef is now equal to that of cattle raised in Japan.
   According to the Associated Press, this decision could lead to the resumption of U.S. beef products from cattle younger than 21 months before the end of the year. Japan banned U.S. beef imports in December 2003 after the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed a case of BSE in a Washington state cow.
   Prior to the ban, Japan was the U.S. cattle industry’s most important overseas market for high-value beef shipments. The U.S. Meat Export Federation estimated that prior to the ban Japan imported more than $1 billion annually.
   Last week, two U.S. senators proposed legislation that would impose more than $3 billion on Japanese imports if the country continued with its U.S. beef import ban.
   Other Asian markets, such as Korea and China, still maintain their U.S. beef import bans.