Of all the good news about Kansas’ reviving economy, this may be the best yet: Japan is getting over its mad cow fears and reopening its markets to U.S. beef this week for the first time in two years, holding out hope for a full rebound for what was a $175 million market for Kansas beef in 2003. And no Senate-imposed tariffs were necessary, thank goodness.
Of course, now that U.S. officials have convinced Japanese officials that U.S. beef is safe, they must do all they can to make sure it is safe — including, if necessary, allowing tougher testing and more specific labeling than U.S. officials have wanted to date. Then there is the Japanese public: One poll last week found 75.2 percent still unwilling to eat American beef.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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