All Intensive Purposes

The Financial Times reports that Japan again has banned U.S. beef after the discovery of a shipment that did not comply with regulations aimed at protecting against "mad cow" disease:

Japan’s renewed ban on US beef imports is likely to remain for a long time, according to Japanese ministers, who said they were angry at the apparent lax inspection of US abattoirs.

On Friday, Tokyo reimposed a ban after the discovery of a beef shipment containing part of a backbone, a clear violation of Japanese import regulations.

Only six weeks ago, Tokyo lifted the ban imposed in December 2003 for fear of importing meat infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or “mad cow” disease, which can be fatal in humans.

The ban, which cost US meat producers an estimated $3bn (€2.5bn, £1.7bn), was lifted on condition that only cattle less than two years old were imported and that potentially dangerous parts, including backbone, be removed.

Taro Aso, foreign minister, said at the weekend: “There will not be any talk of resuming imports before hearing how the US will cope with the matter. Obviously, the responsibility of the exporting side has to be questioned.” ....

The breaking of Tokyo’s import regulations by Atlantic Veal and Lamb, the New York-based company that shipped the meat to Japan, will add to a sense that US abattoirs are insensitive to the requirements of Japanese consumers. Japanese politicians and consumer groups said the discovery also suggested that US inspection of abattoirs was unreliable.

Atlantic Veal and Lamb described its failure to remove backbone as “an honest mistake” resulting from a misunderstanding of Japan’s requirements.

It said that from a scientific point of view it was not necessary to remove backbone to render the meat in question safe, since it had come from cattle under six months old, too young to be at risk of BSE.

Privately, some US officials accuse the Japanese government of bowing to irrational consumer fears and imposing restrictions that are scientifically unnecessary. ....

Yoshinoya, a beef bowl restaurant, whose best-known menu item is a cheap-and-cheerful offering of US meat, said it would have to suspend the planned February 11 relaunch of its signature dish. The ban on beef imports severely damaged Yoshinoya’s business, forcing it to switch to less popular pork.