Japanese consumers criticized the government Friday

[Manitoba_Rancher]

(Kyodo) -- Japanese consumers criticized the government Friday for its
decision the previous day to restart beef imports from the United States, with
some yelling at officials during a session to explain the government
position.

About 300 consumers and business representatives attended the meeting in
Tokyo to hear the reasons why the government lifted a six-month embargo imposed
over fears of mad cow disease. A number of those taking part accused the
officials of talking with them only after a formal decision had been taken.

"I am not satisfied with today's meeting. It is meaningless to hear our
opinions after the government made the decision," said Yasuaki Yamaura, vice
chairman of the Consumers Union of Japan. "I want the decision to be
revoked."

"This session is nothing but a farce," a male consumer said. A housewife
added, "Japan has reached this conclusion after coming under repeated pressure
from the United States."

They both said that Tokyo must not reopen the beef trade unless
Washington implements stronger safeguard measures against the brain-wasting
disease, such as a blanket testing of all slaughtered cows and a total ban on
meat-and-bone meal, a feed believed to be a cause of the disease.

Officials of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare and the Ministry
of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said that they had reflected
stakeholders' voices to some extent in setting procedures to resume the beef
trade.

 

[Sandhusker]

Agman, "They want our beef and will scramble to buy it as soon as it is made available".

 

[Anonymous]

Agman, "They want our beef and will scramble to buy it as soon as it is made available".

Looks like ol Agman is the minority of the "experts" opinions. :lol: :lol:

------------------------

Rebuilding beef trade with Japan could take years



Star Herald

AP 07/30/2006

Nebraska,US



OMAHA (AP) - American beef producers are eager to resume trade with Japan and other nations because exports used to account for 10 percent of beef sales every year.



Now that Japan has lifted its ban on U.S. beef, trade can resume there, but analysts say restoring sales to pre-ban levels and regaining the trust of Japanese consumers will be a slow process.



"The Japanese consumer likely has a lot of questions about the safety of the U.S. product," said Darrell Mark, an agricultural economist with the University of Nebraska's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.



In addition to the original fears of mad cow disease that prompted Japan and other countries to ban U.S. beef in 2003, some Japanese officials questioned the safety of the U.S. product. This concern was heightened after backbone was found in a January shipment, prompting the latest six-month suspension of trade.



U.S. officials and industry representatives maintain that there is no reason to question the safety of American beef, and groups like the U.S. Meat Export Federation have already started trying to convince the Japanese of that.



The Denver-based export federation stayed in touch with Japanese customers throughout the trade talks to let them know about new procedures and safety precautions that had been adopted, federation spokesman Lynn Heinze said.



The next step will be a promotional campaign to let Japanese beef importers and consumers know that American beef producers care about the safety of their product, Heinze said.



Japan briefly lifted its ban in December before reinstating it a month later the backbone was found because that tissue is believed to potentially carry mad cow disease. The cuts - veal hotel rack, which has rib bones connected to the spine - are eaten in the United States but not allowed in Japan.



The beef trade with Japan is so important to the industry because it used to be the top export market for U.S. beef. About $1.4 billion of U.S. beef was sold in Japan in 2003.



Beef producers from Australia, New Zealand and South America have moved into the Japanese market since 2003, but Heinze said less beef is being eaten in Japan today than before the scare about mad cow disease, which is the common name for bovine spongiform encephalopathy.



Heinze said that before the ban, beef accounted for about 5 percent of the protein consumed in Japan. Now beef accounts for only about 3.5 percent of the protein the Japanese eat.



"We not only have to compete with Australia and New Zealand, but we have to raise the water for all ships," Heinze said.



Opinion polls that the export federation has conducted in Japan show that less than 10 percent of consumers there say they're confident the U.S. Department of Agriculture's inspections will ensure beef is safe.



But Heinze said even at the height of U.S. beef sales to Japan only about 20 percent of Japanese consumers expressed confidence in USDA inspections.



The export federation expects that it will take three to four years to return to normal levels of trade in Japan, Heinze said.



After the U.S. beef ban was lifted Thursday, Japanese importers said their clients weren't rushing to place orders.



Pete McClymont, president of the Nebraska Cattlemen, said he's looking forward to full trade with Japan because before the 2003 ban, Nebraska sold about $300 million of beef products annually to Japan.



"We will be more pleased after we know the first load has been received in Japan and after multiple shipments prove Japan is sincere about being a fair trading partner again," said McClymont, who owns a feedlot near Holdrege.



The Nebraska organization, as well as beef industry giants like Tyson Foods Inc., have criticized Japan for accepting only beef from cattle less than 20 months old. Japan's restriction will limit the beef that can be shipped there and producers must take extra steps to document the age of cattle.



Beef from cattle up to 30 months of age is accepted in the United States and most other countries; Japan wants the 20-month cutoff because infection levels from mad cow disease are believed to rise with age.



Mark, the agricultural economist, estimated that restoring the beef trade with Japan to 2003 levels would add $4 to $6 to the price for every 100 pounds of beef sold. But he's not sure how long it might take to meet that goal.



"It's going to take months or years until we get back to that point," Mark said.



These days, exports account for only about 5 percent of all U.S. beef sales, which is half of the pre-ban figure, Mark said.



In people, eating meat products contaminated with the degenerative nerve disease, known as mad cow disease, is linked to a rare but fatal disease called variant Creutzfeldt Jakob disease.



---



On the Net:

U.S. Meat Export Federation: http://www.usmef.org

Nebraska Cattlemen: http://www.nebraskacattlemen.org

University of Nebraska's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources: www.ianr.unl.edu





Source: Star-Herald

starherald.com

 

[Manitoba_Rancher]

We not only have to compete with Australia and New Zealand, but we have to raise the water for all ships," Heinze said.

OT- I believe we were shipping beef in there while you werent....... and the japanese trust our testing and tracking procedures.

 

[Econ101]

We not only have to compete with Australia and New Zealand, but we have to raise the water for all ships," Heinze said.

OT- I believe we were shipping beef in there while you werent....... and the japanese trust our testing and tracking procedures.

MR, would you like to participate in a grown up discussion or do you want to continue your na na na na mentality.

 

[ranch hand]

We not only have to compete with Australia and New Zealand, but we have to raise the water for all ships," Heinze said.

OT- I believe we were shipping beef in there while you werent....... and the japanese trust our testing and tracking procedures.

MR....how much are you shipping as to pre bse? Are you right back in the ball park as far a numbers?