SAGA (Kyodo) The Saga Prefectural Government overlooked notification from the agriculture ministry that high-quality beef it was sending to the United Arab Emirates with a local government official last November needed to be inspected, Animal Quarantine Service officials said Tuesday.
The Saga government, which inquired on Oct. 29 about necessary procedures for taking a sample of local beef to the oil-rich Arab state, was twice informed by the service's Kansai airport branch of the need for checks, no matter how small the amount, the officials said.
On Nov. 15, the branch again informed the Saga government in detail by phone that documents, including a certificate of safety inspection and an animal quarantine certificate, were required.