‘Very welcome news,’ cattlemen’s association says of Japan lifting beef restriction

Mar 31, 2023

After 20 years, Canadian beef producers will have full access to the Japanese market.

This will come as excellent news for Saskatchewan producers, according to Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association CEO Grant McLellan — especially since Japan is the third-biggest beef importer in the world.

“We feel very good about it. I mean, this is 20 years in the making that we finally get to see the final vestiges of some of those restrictions and trade blockages from Canada to Japan,” he said.

“We’ve seen even in the face of those challenges that Japan is our second-largest export market for Canadian beef. I know that we exported — I think in 2022 — $520 million in beef products, which even that was an 18 per cent increase over the previous year and 2021. So it’s definitely huge news, very welcome news.”

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Video: Advancing Swine Disease Traceability: USDA's No-Cost RFID Tag Program for Market Channels

On-demand webinar, hosted by the Meat Institute, experts from the USDA, National Pork Board (NPB) and Merck Animal Health introduced the no-cost 840 RFID tag program—a five-year initiative supported through African swine fever (ASF) preparedness efforts. Beginning in Fall 2025, eligible sow producers, exhibition swine owners and State Animal Health Officials can order USDA-funded RFID tags through Merck A2025-10_nimal Health.

NPB staff also highlighted an additional initiative, funded by USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Services through NPB, that helps reduce the cost of transitioning to RFID tags across the swine industry and strengthens national traceability efforts.

Topics Covered:

•USDA’s RFID tag initiative background and current traceability practices

•How to access and order no-cost 840 RFID tags

•Equipment support for tag readers and panels

•Implementation timelines for market and cull sow channels How RFID improves ASF preparedness an