Eu Not Satisfied With Beef-Hormone Plan

The European Union on Monday said new U.S. proposals for defusing a dispute over imports of hormone-treated beef failed to address the EU’s main concerns.

The EU’s executive commission said it had received a letter from U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky and Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman proposing U.S. beef and beef products exported to the EU be labeled to show their national origin.

But commission spokesman Nigel Gardner said the offer falls short of EU demands the meat carry a specific label showing it is hormone-treated.

Gardner said the EU was examining the U.S. proposals closely and wanted to continue contacts to resolve the dispute.

The squabble over imports of hormone-treated beef into the 15-nation bloc is just one of several ongoing trade disputes between the EU and Washington, including a contentious dispute over banana imports.

A year ago, the WTO ruled that an existing EU ban on hormone-treated beef was illegal and must be lifted by May 13, 1999. It said the EU ban was not backed up by proper risk analysis.

But last week, the EU Commission proposed to extend the ban until the completion of scientific tests to see whether the beef is safe for human consumption.