Articles Tagged with ''Japan''

The U.S. Meat Export Federation expects U.S. beef sales to Japan to rise to 217,000 tons in 2013.

Cargill is reintroducing Spencer Beef to the marketplace following Japan’s announcement in January that it would allow into the country imports of U.S. beef products from cattle under 30 months of age.

USDA weekly export sales data showed that Japan bought 10,900 tons in the week ending Feb. 17, the most since 2010.

U.S. beef processors will be able to ship beef from cattle aged 30 months of younger, a change from the current limitation of 20 months.

The Brazilian government notified the World Animal Health Organization (OIE) of the discovery of the protein believed to cause bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a cow that died in 2010.

Japan has halted beef imports from a Cargill plant in Schuyler, Neb., after American authorities failed to confirm that beef from the plant without proper documents met Japan’s animal age requirements.

Japan’s health ministry will relax the age limit on U.S. beef to 30 months from 20 months next year after it receives approval from the nation’s Food Safety Commission as early as this month.

Japan is moving toward relaxing restrictions on American beef imports, which had been limited because of fears about mad-cow disease.

"The United States (will) resume imports from Japan from Aug. 17 onwards, acknowledging that (Japan) is clean from foot-and-mouth disease," the ministry said.

Japan halted beef imports from a JBS Swift plant in Grand Island, Neb., after finding material prohibited under rules to control the risk of mad cow disease.