Indonesia lifts ban on U.S. beef; By Eric Hansen for meatingplace.com: Indonesia has lifted its trade ban on U.S. beef, becoming one of the first countries besides Canada and Mexico to open its borders after America's first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy was discovered in December.

In 2003, Indonesia imported 3,147 metric tons of beef muscle cuts and 12,992 metric tons of beef variety meats from the United States, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation. The U.S. market share was less than 5 percent, but the country is seen as a growth opportunity by USMEF.

Talks are underway with Japan, America's largest beef customer, in hopes of restoring trade by early fall.