Seventy-two cows have been shipped since 1996 from a farm in the town of Saroma, Hokkaido, where a 5-year-old cow suspected of having mad cow disease was born, according to the farm ministry, which on Tuesday banned the use of cow meat and bone meal for use in cattle feed.
Of these, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has confirmed that 35 were shipped to farms in Hokkaido, while 28 others were sold outside the region.
The issue of what happened to the remaining nine is still under investigation, the farm ministry said Tuesday.