The arcane and bureaucratic ways of the European Union (EU) turn very slowly, but appear to be opening the door to allow imports of U.S. chicken into member countries. This is after more than a decade of outlawing it because it allegedly contains growth promotants and hormones that are unhealthy.
The EU uses this seem lame excuse to ban U.S. beef imports. If you've tried to eat beef in Europe, its easy to see that they desperately need U.S. beef imports. Beef on the continent is mostly used dairy cows. It is tough and tastes bad, as you would expect. You eat a lot more pork and chicken when you are in Europe, believe me.
What is especially farcical about the EU ban in both U.S. beef and chicken, is that the domestically raised European meat is loaded with growth stimulants and hormones. And they aren't the benign ones allowed in the United States. They are in much greater concentrations than would ever be allowed in the U.S., and they are dangerous hormones like Stilbesterol, which has been illegal in the U.S. for years.
Scientists have to virtually smuggle samples of European chicken and beef out of the countries to get it to a lab to test it, as the EU tries to hide its dirty little secret so carefully. Truth is truth, however, and the secret has long been out.
As in most foreign trade disputes, the EU is using a false health ruse as an excuse to protect domestic farmers from competition. Nothing more, nothing less. If indeed they open the market to U.S. chicken, it won't be because the American product has suddenly changed. It'll be because European chicken production has been cut by some dread disease they are keeping under wraps, chicken demand has risen or they need the U.S. product to cover some domestic shortfall.
Europe never was a big market for U.S. beef. It was a great place to dump all the so-called organ meats like livers, kidneys, hearts and tripe, which are considered a delicacy over there, but are hard to sell in the U.S. A small amount of high quality beef was let in to sell in tourist hotels catering to Americans, but that was about it.
The EU market may open one day open the market for U.S. beef, just as they are rumoring it will for chicken. The World Court has sanctioned them for illegal trade barriers in both products, but the ultimate decision will be made by market need, not fairness, justice or scientific fact.
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This article has very random and untrue facts that are the author's personal views (ex: "if you've ever been to Europe, you know they need American beef"), and only serve to show how biased his opinions are.
Also, this author has obviously never been to Europe.
One obvious question that he does not answer is: why would the EU lower their environmental and health standards just to allow american imports? This makes absolutely no sense; it would disadvantage their own farmers who have to pay more to feed and keep their animals.
Of course, it takes an American to think that washing chicken in chlorene is an acceptable food safety procedure and that the world should embrace it just because they do.
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