Beef from cattle of all ages can now be traded among all nations, regardless of any one nation's history of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, provided certain procedures are followed, according to revised standards issued by the Office of International Epizooitics.

Under the revised standards, boneless beef from animals under 30 months of age can be traded regardless of a country's BSE status, while other cuts and beef from older animals would be viable for trade provided specified risk mitigation procedures, such as ruminant-to-ruminant feed bans, are in force.

A story Friday on Meatingplace.com implied that some cuts could not be traded at all from countries with a history of BSE; the actual standard says only that specified risk materials (SRMs) must be removed from older cattle.

Canadian cattlemen and trade representatives hailed the decision as a major victory. While it is unknown how this change in standards will affect the lawsuits that are at present keeping the Canadian border closed to live cattle moving to the United States, Canadians feel that new developments could render moot the lawsuit originally initiated by R-CALF USA. "This is very, very positive," Ted Haney, president of the Canada Beef Export Federation told CanWest Interactive . "They [the revised standards] really underscore the need to more fully use science-based analysis to craft trade policy."

The decision to exclude boneless beef cuts from animals under 30 months of age from any sort of trade ban could have immediate effects on trade with Japan and South Korea. The revisions undercut the standards both countries were using to prohibit all American and Canadian beef.

"Make no mistake: beef is safe regardless of age," said James H. Hodges, president of the American Meat Institute Foundation. "The BSE infective agent has never been detected in beef muscle. Adding an arbitrary age number that cannot be justified by science runs the risk of sending a confusing message to the consumer. Indeed, the OIE has agreed to study this new policy over the next year to make sure it is scientifically sound."

Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns called on nations with bans in effect to renegotiate them with an eye to the changed trade climate. "We look forward to working with other countries to amend regulations to reflect these guidelines, which will continue to promote our first objective of safeguarding animal and human health," Johanns said.