WTO blasts Europe on U.S. beef imports

For over 20 years, the European Economic Community (EC) has kept U.S. beef out of its member countries falsely, alleging that it contains growth-promoting hormones that are unhealthy for humans.

The U.S. has continuously fought the ban through the slow, laborious procedures of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the World Court, winning at every turn, but just as continuously appealed by the EC, successfully keeping U.S. beef out.

This is a trade barrier to protect European farmers, who use stilbesterol--outlawed in the U.S.--to promote growth in their cattle. It is far more dangerous than the naturally-occuring vegetable substances used in the U.S. Beef in Europe is a by-product of the dairy industry. As most travelers to the continent will tell you, European beef is terrible. Tourist hotels are importing U.S. beef, due to popular demand from their customers, finding ways around the U.S. beef ban.

Now comes word that the WTO Appellate Body, acting on one of the EC's appeals, said the ban of U.S. beef has to be on the basis of science, not artificial trade barriers--all that the U.S. has asked for all along. A lifting of the ban is probably years away, even now, as the EC can thumb its nose at the WTO and World Court, as their judgements are largely unenforceable.

In addition to the hotel/restaurant trade, the U.S. heavily exported organ meats, such as hearts, livers, kidneys and tongues, to Europe, where such products are considered delicacies. In the U.S. they are largely considered offal, and wind up in cheap hamburger. They sold in quantity at much greater prices in Europe than is ever possible in the U.S. domestic market.

The WTO Appellate Body action is a ray of sunshine, encouraging--even if it doesn't represent any immediate change in the status quo. The U.S. beef industry has to "just keep on keepin' on" as the young folks say.