Canada Says It Will Keep Border Open to U.S. Beef; Taiwan Imposes Ban,

[mom cat]

Canada Says It Will Keep Border Open to U.S. Beef; Taiwan Imposes Ban, Japan Concerned

By Rob Gillies Associated Press Writer
Published: Jun 25, 2005


http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB32TDAEAE.html



TORONTO (AP) - Canada, which two years ago was prohibited from exporting its cattle to the United States after a mad cow scare, has no intention of closing its borders to U.S. beef after Washington announced that a cow tested positive there, Canada's agriculture minister said.
The comments from Canadian Agriculture Minister Andy Mitchell came as Taiwan reimposed the ban on U.S. beef that it lifted just two months ago. Also, a Japanese government food safety panel expressed concern Saturday about the second confirmed American case, raising speculation that Tokyo may delay a planned resumption of U.S. beef imports.

The U.S. ban on Canadian cattle has cost Canada's ranching industry $5.6 billion and strained ties between the two countries. Canadian officials have regularly called for an end to the ban, and they said the U.S. announcement of its first homegrown case of mad cow confirmed their belief that keeping the border closed to Canadian cattle no longer served its stated purpose.

"There is really no excuse to delay opening up the border. It has to be open. The American administration is behind us. Canadian science clearly shows this and it should open now," Prime Minister Paul Martin said from Alberta, a province hit hard by the ban.

[Jon_da_brockman]

1. Way to turn the other cheek, Paul

though sweet retribution would have been enjoyable

[mom cat]

3. Very cheeky!

[daleo]

2. Martin is dreaming a free trade dream

The U.S. population will not go along with the reasoning "since we have mad cow in the U.S., we might as well import mad cow from Canada too - fair's fair". Only people living in an economics textbook could take such a likelihood seriously.

[waynew706]

4. Might be cheeky, but....

your government cost our country one hell of alot of money by banning beef products when we were in trouble. Nice to see our Government has a bit more sympathy for yours.

[Jon_da_brockman]

5. Indeed

I suspect that the American govenments position in these situations resulted in a lot of the anti-american sentiment, especially in Alberta.

[mom cat]

7. My "cheeky" comment was a pun on the post about" turning the

other cheek! No offense intended and I am sorry if I hurt anyone's feelings. I was just having a bout of :sarcasm:

[Adrian Luca]

6. Good News For Australia

Australian beef exporters are rubbbing their hands with glee

[waynew706]

8. I don't take exception and certainly don't...

want to fight about it.... We have bigger things to get at.

[achtung_circus]

9. In a passive-aggressive Canadian kind of way. NT

[waynew706]

10. Hahaha... I love it...

Execept for one problem..... ugh... Bird Flu...