The government on Monday approved the resumption of U.S. beef imports, lifting a two-year ban that has been in place since the discovery of mad cow disease in what had been one of Japan's biggest sources of low-cost beef.
"Conditions (in North American beef production) are better. We have therefore decided to allow imports of U.S. and Canadian beef," an agriculture ministry official said.
A team of experts has been sent to the U.S. to inspect meat packing plants and will compile a report by the end of the month to verify the safety of the exports, he said.
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