Japanese Delay Vote On Ending U.S. Beef Ban
Ban Imposed After U.S. Mad Cow Discovery
POSTED: 11:30 am CDT October 24, 2005
TOKYO -- A Japanese government panel on mad cow disease delayed a decision Monday on easing a two-year-old ban on U.S. beef imports. A member of the food safety panel told the Dow Jones Newswires that the decision is being put off until the next meeting.
This comes even though the group had prepared a draft report concluding the risk from American beef is very low.
The panel had been widely expected to send the report on to the Food Safety Commission, which would set a process in motion that could have led to resumption of the imports by the end of the year.
U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns was visiting Japan when word came down.
"There is a great deal of frustration in the United States that this problem has not been resolved after such a long time," he said.
The delay also risks tensions with the United States ahead of President George W. Bush's visit to Japan next month.
Japan imposed the ban Dec. 24, 2003, after mad cow disease was discovered in one animal in Washington state. Before the ban, Japan was the biggest overseas market for American beef.
