WASHINGTON (Kyodo) Japan should swiftly relax its import trade criteria for American beef once a global animal disease watchdog awards the United States official beef-safety status, as widely anticipated, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said Thursday.
The United States is expected to receive the status at the General Assembly meeting in May of the World Organization for Animal Health, known commonly by the French acronym OIE.
"We're expecting the OIE decision in mid-May. . . . I can't predict when Japan may move, but they certainly know what our thoughts are here," Johanns told reporters.