EU Criticizes U.S. Controls of Animal Hormone Industry

October 5, 1999

A draft report from the European Union accuses the United States of not following good veterinary practices when growth hormones are used in food animal programs. Regulatory controls over hormone residues in meat are deficient in the United States, says the EU. The claims have upset U.S. officials.

The EU has refused to abide by a World Trade Organization dispute settlement panel that found no justification for the EU ban on meat imports if the products came from animals treated with growth hormones.

"It is troubling that the EU is unable to present any peer-reviewed, scientific justification that would withstand international scrutiny to support he claims in the report," says Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman in a letter to EU agriculture Commissioner Franz Fischler.

"Among our concerns is the issue of `black-market drugs' raised in the report," Glickman says. "This is an issue that has been well documented as an EU problem, not a U.S. problem. The results from the `hormone free program' evaluation by the EU did not find any use of unapproved hormones in the United States. When producers have access to safe and effective drugs for growth promotion and feed efficiency, there is little incentive to use black market drugs."

The report also concludes there is an increased exposure to hormones because regulatory controls over residues in meat are deficient in the United States. "This claim cannot be supported when the science-based system of pre-market approval, monitoring, surveillance and inspection are objectively examined," says Glickman.