  Who is the Food Safety Commission collecting opinions on BSE for?Akahata editorial The U.S. government has responded to the advisory report drafted by the Cabinet Office Food Safety Commission on the assessment of risks involving food and health concerning Japanese measures. The U.S. government evaluates the report's call for BSE testing only on cows 21 months or older as "an important step forward," and calls for the minimum age for BSE testing to be raised to 30 months. Is the U.S. government representing the interests of Japanese citizens? The Food Safety Commission received the U.S. request in a letter providing "opinions and information" in response to the Commission's call. Its advisory report concerns the assessment of Japan's anti-BSE measures. It is asking for opinions from the "broader Japanese public." Make no mistake, it is Japanese citizens that are asked to present opinions. At issue are domestic measures. How can the U.S. government express its view? The United States has sent this letter with the aim of forcing Japan to lift the U.S. beef ban. The letter concludes by expressing "hope for Japan to complete necessary considerations and steps as soon as possible to resume U.S. beef imports." If the Food Safety Commission accepts this U.S. request, it will contradict its previous explanation to the Japanese people. In public discussions, many participants felt that reviewing Japan's BSE-testing standards at this time may be aimed at resuming U.S. beef imports. Each time, the Commission had to answer, "We are not considering resuming U.S. beef imports." In response to these questions raised by the public, some experts at the Food Safety Commission Prions Expert Committee meetings said, "An advisory opinion call for a review of cattle age for BSE tests can be taken as being related to U.S. beef imports." The Health, Labor, and Welfare Ministry replied that the advisory is to "ensure scientific rationality," and that the Food Safety Commission chairman will consider the question of a resumption of U.S. beef imports "as a separate case." To begin with, there is no domestic reason for having to relax the policy of testing all cattle. The U.S. government has demanded this policy change in order to force Japan to list the U.S. beef import ban. It is natural that citizens should not be convinced by the government explanation that the domestic BSE testing standards will be eased in order to lift the ban on U.S. beef imports. The Food Safety Commission should not accept the U.S. request. Intending to exclude cattle aged 30 months or younger from BSE testing, the U.S. argues that a BSE-infected calf found in Japan is not internationally confirmed as BSE-positive. However, a 23-month old BSE-infected calf found in Japan was confirmed that it was infected with an "irregular" type of BSE. A member of the Prion Task Force pointed out that since the case was found in Japan, the "irregular" type has been recognized in seven other countries. Testing on all cows must be continued Japan's policy of testing all beef cows has been effective in eliminating BSE-infected cows from the food chain and in developing international BSE-related research. Learning lessons from the first BSE-infected cow found in Japan, the Food Safety Commission was established in July 2003 as an independent agency. Its mission is to ensure food safety by reflecting public opinions. Japan must listen to citizens' calls for extensive testing to be continued instead of yielding to U.S. pressure for beef imports. (Akahata, April 20, 2005) |