China lifts U.S. beef ban

BEIJING, June 30 (Reuters) China has restored imports of United States beef, ending a two-and-a-half year ban prompted by fears of mad cow disease, state media reported.

The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture would allow boneless beef imports from US cattle 30 months or younger that have been stripped of spines, brains and other parts, the official Xinhua news agency reported late yesterday.

China's decision follows Japan's announcement earlier this month that it may also soon lift its block on US beef.

China, Japan and South Korea imposed the bans after mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), was found in US cattle in December 2003.

In some cases, humans who have eaten beef have died from Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a variant of BSE believed to come from contaminated meat.

The United States has insistently lobbied both countries and South Korea to lift the ban, which has been a boon to Australian beef producers.

Chinese and US officials met in May to discuss lifting the ban after several rounds of talks. China has been a small market for US cattle producers, but Washington has been anxious not to be locked out of the growing market.

China's Agriculture Ministry said on its Web site (www.agri.gov.cn) that the ban had been lifted from yesterday and Chinese inspection agencies would issue specific regulations concerning restored imports.

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