Farming union leaders are to meet assembly government officials to press for foot-and-mouth animal movement restrictions to be lifted quickly.
Farmers in Wales can send animals for slaughter from Thursday for the first time since the foot-and-mouth outbreak.
Abattoirs in Scotland have been told that they can resume slaughter.
The restrictions were put in place last Friday after Surrey's outbreak. They have already been relaxed in Scotland.
The Farmer's Union of Wales (FUW) said there would be "hell to pay" if its bid to ease the rules were not successful.
Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones told a meeting of farming union leaders the decision was taken on the basis of veterinary advice.
But Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones said they were not in a competition and she must be satisfied it was safe before she relaxed the rules in Wales.
But she warned that the end of the ban would be reconsidered if there were any further outbreaks.
Ms Jones said she would be meeting Defra and veterinary experts before the meeting with unions on Wednesday.
The restrictions - which also apply to England - will be eased from midnight on Wednesday to allow animals to be moved from farms directly to abattoirs.
But she stressed she would not be rushed in to changing restrictions put in place nationwide after the first outbreak of foot-and-mouth was confirmed in Surrey last week.
Ms Jones said: "On the basis of veterinary advice and risk assessment, I now believe it is a proportionate response to allow movement for slaughter under stringent conditions.
"Once I am persuaded that it is safe to do so I will certainly be allowing it to happen in Wales," she told BBC Wales' Good Morning Wales programme.
"My priority has always been to contain the spread of the disease and keep Wales foot-and-mouth free.
"I have a responsibility to retain Wales' disease-free status and I intend to do that and only make changes to the restriction on the movement of livestock when it is safe to do so."
"I have consistently said that we would begin to ease restrictions when it was safe to do so and I am pleased to be in that position today."
Restrictions on the transportation of animals were imposed last Friday, but have been relaxed in Scotland to allow animals to be transported from farms to slaughterhouses under strictly controlled conditions.
Ms Jones urged consumers to buy Welsh meat, and expressed her gratitude for the co-operation of the farming community.
Gareth Vaughan, President of the Farmers' Union of Wales, said he would be pressing for a similar relaxation.
But she warned farmers not to be "complacent" and to remain vigilant to ensure the country's disease-free status.
"We will be making a very strong case for the removal of this ban because we have already temporarily lost a very hard won export market and it is essential there are no delays in returning to normality as far as the food chain is concerned," he said.
"I am conscious also that the easing I have announced today would need to be reconsidered in the event of any further outbreaks of disease," she added.
We must continue this fight and if we don't have any success today there will be hell to pay Gareth Vaughan, Farmers' Union of Wales
National Farmers' Union Cymru president Dai Davies welcomed the announcement, but said the union did have some concerns.
Mr Vaughan said there is only seven to 10 days of meat production within the food chain in the UK and it was "vital" that home production was back on the shelves as quickly as possible.
"We cannot afford to lose our very important home market to imports. We must continue this fight and if we don't have any success today there will be hell to pay," he said.
On Monday, the European Commission formalised a ban on British exports of meat, milk products and live animals.
People have been urged to continue visiting the countryside as normal
People have been urged to continue visiting the countryside as normal
Mr Davies said in the long-term after the restriction on movement of animals within Wales was relaxed, they would ask the EU to lift the ban on the export of Welsh beef and lamb.
He said: "We need to see as many slaughter facilities as possible reaching the standard in order to maximise competition in the market place."
He said Welsh beef and lamb had a Protected Geographic Indication (PGI), which is a status awarded by the EU to foods that are unique to a particular geographic area.
The ban on moving cows, sheep and pigs meant farmers were not able to sell any livestock, or take them to abattoirs, and workers at two abattoirs on Anglesey and in Gwynedd were temporarily laid off.
Mr Davies said it would "reassure people in Europe the animals had come from Wales, a region which is a fair distance from Surrey".
Before Wednesday's meeting the Farmers' Union of Wales (FUW) had said there would be "hell to pay" if its bid to ease the rules was not successful.
The ban on moving cows, sheep and pigs means farmers are not able to sell any livestock or take them to abattoirs and workers at two abattoirs on Anglesey and in Gwynedd have been temporarily laid off.
But Ms Jones had said she would be meeting Defra and veterinary experts beforehand, and would not relax the rules unless it was safe.
And on Tuesday, councils in Wales said they were investigating two possible breaches - in Pembrokeshire and Wrexham- of moving livestock during the ban.
New guidelines on the disposal of dead animals on farms came into force in Wales first thing on Wednesday allowing for the collection of dead livestock from farms - subject to tight bio security controls.
New guidelines on the disposal of dead animals on farms came into force in Wales at midnight allow for the collection of dead livestock from farms - subject to tight bio security controls.
If carcasses cannot be collected within a specific period, farmers are permitted to bury them on their land.
If carcasses cannot be collected within a specific period, farmers are permitted to bury them on their land.
