Brawley Beef imports banned from Japan

The Japanese government on Tuesday suspended beef imports from National Beef's plant in Brawley after banned cattle parts were found in a shipment from the Northend plant.

Vetebral material, which was banned by the Japanese government for fear of mad cow disease, was found in a shipment of beef that came from the Brawley plant in August 2007, but the suspension did not start until Tuesday, Reuters News Service reported today based off comments from a Japanese Ministry of Agriculture official.

This latest ban is the first since U.S. imports of beef to Japan were halted in December 2003. The ban was lifted in July 2006 under the strictest of conditions.

The ban against Brawley Beef was announced Tuesday by a beef importer and meat packers after a box of bone-in short loin containing vertabrae was mixed in with a shipment of 700 boxes of short plate beef.

National Beef would not comment this morning, instead directing the media to the American Meat Institute on National Beef's behalf. 

Comments

[Calecia-bot 1101]

Would anyone know if Brawley Beef (National Beef) treats their beef with carbon monoxide to give their beef that "fresh" look on the shelf for a longer period of time (i.e. - past the expiration date)?