◆ Inspection begins for 1st U.S. beef shipment after import ban lifted (Kyodo News) The Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry and the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry began inspecting the first shipment of U.S. beef at Narita airport Tuesday since Japan lifted a reinstated import ban over mad cow disease. [News Source]

Japan to Check First U.S. Beef Shipment Since Mad Cow Ban Ended (Bloomberg.com) Aug. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Japan will today inspect the first shipment of U.S. beef to arrive since the country ended a six- month ban imposed over mad cow disease concern. [News Source]

Zimbabwe: Biotechnology - Debate Rages On (AllAfrica.com) THE rapid progress of modern biotechnology and the scares over mad cow disease and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have generated highly charged debate on biotechnology in many parts of the world including Africa leading to public showdowns, regulatory and trade disputes. [News Source]

Japan resumes imports of U.S. beef (Lincoln Journal Star) TOKYO — Japan imported its first shipment of American beef since January on Monday, resuming a once-booming business that has been crippled for almost three years over fears of mad cow disease. [News Source]

Hot Topic: US To Extend Public-Comment Time On BSE Risk Study (CattleNetwork.com) WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The U.S. Department of Agriculture has decided to allow the public more time to send in comments on the results of a Harvard University study that shows government efforts have cut the risks of human exposure to mad-cow disease, USDA officials said. [News Source]

US beef returns to Japan (AFP via Yahoo! News) The first shipment of US beef in eight months arrived in Japan after the country ended an embargo imposed over fears of mad cow disease, officials said. [News Source]

Value of BSE testing depends on purpose. Science may not argue for greater screening for mad cow disease, but that's not the whole picture. [News Source]

Beef is beef is beef — sort of . Though the nutritional differences are slight, people are paying more for niche meat. Those labels, however, aren't very clearly defined. [News Source]

U.S. beef facing slow go in Japan. Now that Japan has lifted its ban on U.S. beef, American beef producers are eager to resume trade there, but analysts say restoring sales to pre-ban levels and regaining the trust of Japanese consumers will be a slow process. [News Source]

First U.S. beef shipment arrives at Narita. On Monday Japan received its first shipment of U.S. beef since Tokyo imposed a ban on U.S. beef in December 2003 after mad cow disease was detected in the United States. [News Source]