Taipei, Jan. 6 (CNA) The United States government and its meat industry expressed their disappointment Wednesday over Taiwan's decision to restore a partial ban on U.S. beef imports and use American beef producers as a "political football."
The U.S. State Department, U.S. Trade Representative Office (USTR) , U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) , the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), the U.S. Meat Export Federation (MEF) and the American Meat Institute (AMI) all expressed their disappointment over the legislature's decision to amend the Act Governing Food Sanitation.
Taiwan and the United States signed a protocol in October to allow the entry of bone-in beef and other beef products, including ground beef and offal, that had previously been banned out of concern over bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease.
The amendment, which cleared the legislature on Tuesday, effectively bars U.S. ground beef, beef offal and other beef parts such as the skull, eyes and intestines from access to Taiwan's market.
Responding to a reporter's question, Philip Crowley, assistant secretary of the Bureau of Public Affairs at the U.S. State Department, said in a briefing Wednesday that the U.S. was "very disappointed" with Taiwan's decision to ban certain cuts of U.S. beef in violation of the bilateral agreement, but the U.S. remains committed to further developing its broad-ranging and positive relationship with the people of Taiwan.
Crowley noted that the U.S., as stipulated in the Taiwan Relations Act, will "continue to make available to Taiwan defense articles and services needed for Taiwan's self-defense." In a joint statement, the USTR and USDA reiterated that Taiwan's decision does not "have a basis in science and constitutes a unilateral violation of a bilateral agreement." "The decision by Taiwan authorities to place domestic politics over science raises serious concerns," the joint statement said.
NCBA chief economist Gregg Doud also attacked the politicization of the issue.
"This is a purely domestic political issue in Taiwan. U.S. beef producers are sick and tired of being used as a political football, " Doud said.
"In our view, the issues expressed by politicians in Taiwan have absolutely no basis in scientific fact and fly in the face of Taiwan's own risk assessment. To suggest that there are any safety concerns related to U.S. beef is outrageous, " Doud said.
The NCBA urged the Obama Administration to explore every available option to rectify this situation as soon as possible.
U.S. Meat Export Federation President and CEO Philip Seng also expressed dismay over the decision, saying that Taiwan's best scientists had determined the safety of U.S. beef through a thorough and extensive risk assessment, but the effort had been largely cast aside.
Seng acknowledged a positive development, however, saying that the recent addition of under-30-month bone-in cuts "has allowed us to grow this market to some degree." In the first 10 months of 2009, Taiwan imported US$114.3 million worth of U.S. beef, six percent more than the year-earlier period, making it the sixth biggest export market for U.S. beef.
When year-end totals are available, exports to Taiwan are expected to surpass the record of US$128 million, set in 2008, according to the U.S Meat Export Federation.
In reinstating the partial ban, Taiwan failed to live up to its obligation as a trade partner, said AMI President J. Patrick Boyle.
"It is time for the government of Taiwan to maintain trade policies that are based upon the facts surrounding U.S. beef safety and consistent with its WTO obligations, " Boyle said.
In order to to minimize the impact of the legislation, Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou called a press conference hours after the announcement of its passage and downplayed the controversy as "an agricultural trade dispute." Ma expressed hope that "the impact of this dispute will be restricted to trade and will not spread to other areas, " saying that the high level of mutual trust built between Taiwan and the U.S. on security and political matters was "hard-earned" in the 19 months since he took office.