Oct. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Taiwan, the sixth-largest buyer of U.S. beef, agreed to resume importing the meat following a 10- month suspension prompted by a lone case of mad cow disease in Washington state, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.

Taiwan ``has agreed in principle'' to resume imports, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said in an e-mailed statement. The shipments were worth $76.3 million last year, the department said. Japan, the biggest overseas customer for U.S. beef, agreed to ease its ban on Oct. 23.

``It's excellent news,'' said Gregg Doud, an economist for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, who said Hong Kong and China may soon follow Taiwan's example. ``Taiwan and Hong Kong could get us momentum for a China reopening,'' he said. Hong Kong bought $90 million in U.S. beef in 2003 and China $28.2 million.

Taiwan, Japan and more than 40 other nations suspended imports of U.S. beef in December 2003 after the government announced the first case of mad cow disease in U.S. history. The import bans threatened more than $3.8 billion in annual U.S. exports and eroded profit for beef producers such as Tyson Foods Inc. and Cargill Inc.

Inspection Visit

Taiwan may resume imports after its experts visit the U.S. to inspect measures taken to counter mad cow disease, which is formally called bovine spongiform encephalopathy and has a fatal human variant, Veneman said. That inspection is scheduled to begin Nov. 10.

Japan, which bought $1.7 billion in U.S. beef last year, agreed to accept U.S. shipments of beef from cattle 20 months of age or younger, which are not known to carry the disease. Analysts said it's not clear when major exports will begin as the two countries have yet to agree on how to determine an animal's age.

Agriculture Department spokeswoman Julie Quick said she didn't know if Taiwan had placed any limits on the beef it will accept.

Taiwan agreed to ease its ban following a visit earlier this week by a U.S. delegation headed by Agriculture Department Undersecretary J.B. Penn, who had led the discussions with Japan. The delegation plans to visit other buyers of U.S. beef in the region, the department said.

Mexico's Imports

Mexico, the second-largest buyer of U.S. beef, resumed about 90 percent of its purchases in April. The country bought $877 million in beef and beef products in 2003, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation, a Denver-based trade group. Japan, Mexico and Taiwan accounted for roughly three-quarters of U.S. beef exports in 2003.

Exports normally account for about 10 percent of total U.S. beef production. Springdale, Arkansas-based Tyson Foods is the biggest shipper, with $1.7 billion in overseas sales in the fiscal year ended September 2003, followed by closely held Cargill, with headquarters in Wayzata, Minnesota.

Shares of Tyson Foods rose 13 cents to $14.25 at 12:06 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock is little changed from a year ago.

Live cattle futures for December delivery fell 0.75 cent to 87.1 cents a pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Prices were down 3.9 percent from Dec. 23, when the U.S. disclosed that a BSE- infected cow had been found. The animal was later determined to have been born in Canada.

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Goldstein in Washington at dgoldstein1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 26, 2004 12:13 EDT