The Federal Department of Agriculture and Water Resources says it is working with Japanese authorities to resolve the trade suspension currently in place.

Click here to view Beef Central’s original news-breaking story from last week.

The Department released the following statement on Friday:

The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has been advised by the Japanese authorities that they have temporarily stopped accepting feeder and breeder cattle from Australia in response to some cattle testing positive for Bovine Johne’s disease (BJD) in post arrival quarantine.

Bovine Johne’s disease is a chronic disease that is found in all major cattle producing countries in the world.

Australia is a trusted supplier of live cattle to many markets worldwide and Japan is a highly valued trading partner. The department is working closely with Japanese authorities to resolve the issue.

An investigation is being undertaken by the department to confirm that the consignment of 300 cattle from Victoria were prepared according to the importing country requirements.

The department continues to liaise with industry and exporters to keep them informed on the progress of the investigation.

The department has also contacted Japanese authorities to request a bilateral technical meeting to discuss the issue and ensure it is resolved in a timely and effective manner.

Japan is Australia’s only international live cattle export market that is actively eradicating Bovine Johne’s disease and has Sanitary or Phytosanitary (SPS) justification in applying strict import controls for this disease.

Australia’s other live cattle export markets are unaffected by BJD prevalence.

A ‘glitch in the system’

Nationals MP Michael McCormack has told the media the ban is due to a ‘glitch in the system’ that Japan and Australia are working to resolve.

Mr McCormack told Sky News the issue is being resolved through bilateral talks with Japan.

‘It’s not an un-common thing, it’s a worldwide problem…Japan is an important trading partner, in the 2014-15 period, $14.5 million worth of live cattle went to Japan.

‘We’ll work through it, but sometimes there are glitches in the system but we will certainly sort it out,’ he said.