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Report
No.240405 |
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- International - |
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Japan Begins Custom Clearance of 910 Tons of Bonded U.S. Beef At the October 24 press meeting held after the cabinet meeting, Agriculture Minister Matsuoka announced that the government will start processing the import procedure for 910 tons of U.S. beef, beginning on October 27. These are beefs having been stored in bonded warehouses at Japanese ports because of commingling of BSE related special risk parts even after the resumption of beef imports in July. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) will now get collaborations of import traders to finish up the procedural steps so all the stock could be cleared of custom by the end of November. The government and the ruling parties, in deciding to allow import of U.S. beef beginning on July 27, put on hold a decision for about 3 months regarding the question of how to deal with the bonded beef to see the status of U.S. compliance with the pre-requisite conditions of resuming imports as well as reactions of consumers in Japan. As it happened, MAFF and MHLW publicized on November 8 that thymus gland was discovered from some import beef package (chilled beef, chilled beef tongue) shipped by a U.S packing plant accredited eligible for Japanese shipment, while that part was not included on the list of exportable beef products from the plant. Both MAFF and MHLW admit though that thymus gland is not BSE related special risk parts and is safe to eat. With regard to U.S. beef, spinal column, which is a special risk part, was found commingled in shipments to Japan in January of this year, leading to a blanket ban of import from the U.S. The ban was lifted in July, and shipment of thymus gland is the first breach of import accord after the market reopening. The product in question was shipped from a major U.S. beef packer, Swift & Co.'s plant in Greeley, Colo. The two ministries will put a temporary halt to flow in the domestic distribution of import beef from that plant and ask the U.S. government to investigate the cause of mishap and present measures to prevent a recurrence. |
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