US under pressure to open beef market

THE Bush administration is coming under increasing pressure to open up the United States market to Irish and European beef.

European Union Ambassador to Washington John Bruton last night outlined some of the efforts that he and his colleagues are making.

He was delivering the annual Michael Dillon Lecture at the College of Physicians in Dublin, organised by the Guild of Agricultural Journalists and sponsored by the Kerry Group.

The former Taoiseach said the US market is closed to Irish and European beef on grounds of BSE risk.

That’s despite the World Animal Health Organisation (OIE) having determined that boneless beef under 30 months of age is not a BSE risk.

Mr Bruton said the US, quite inconsistently, refuses entry for European beef that are under 30 months.

But it tries vigorously to get US beef that is under 30 months admitted into various Asian countries despite BSE outbreaks in America.

He said the US is also quick to ban EU beef exports on grounds of other cattle diseases and has only recently started, in limited cases, to allow a regionalisation of risk.

Mr Burton said EU Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner Markos Kyprianou is going to Washington in the next two weeks to reinforce the efforts he and his colleagues are making on these points.