Japan Protests US Beef

Top government officials said Saturday they would lodge protests with the United States after it was found that lack of knowledge on the part of an inspector allowed a banned material that poses a risk of mad cow disease to be included in a shipment of beef.

Foreign Minister Taro Aso, appearing in Miyata, Fukuoka Prefecture, said, "There will be no talk of resuming imports before hearing how the United States will cope with the matter." U.S. officials admitted that the system for inspecting beef bound for Japan is flawed, and said they would conduct a thorough investigation and employ stricter inspection measures.

Aso, for his part, criticized the U.S. inspection regime. "Products that were exported after supposedly sufficient quality control measures were taken were in fact shipped without them," he said. "Obviously, the responsibility of the exporting side has to be called into question. It is natural that Japan reinstated a ban on U.S. beef."

US Agriculture Secretary, Mike Johanns, announced a set of measures, including "unannounced" inspections at every meat exporter, sending additional USDA inspectors to every plant to review procedures and ensure compliance with the export agreements, and requiring two USDA inspectors to review every shipment to confirm that compliance. "These additional inspection requirements . . . will be applied to all processing plants approved for beef export and all beef shipments designated for export from the United States."

Now wouldn't it be nice if the US government cared as much about the American consumer of beef?
Posted on The Human Stain