European Union                               

European Union                                                                         

New WTO Dispute Settlement Panel In Hormone Case

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has set up a dispute settlement panel at the request of the European Union (EU) in the latest round in the hormone ban case. Although it lost its case at the WTO and subsequent appeals because it could not provide scientific evidence that the hormones used in U.S. cattle production were harmful to health, in October 2003, the EU claimed to be in compliance based on EU legislation and what it described as recent scientific studies. At the time USMEF President & CEO Philip Seng commented:

“The statement by the EU that it is now in compliance with the World Trade Organization on its ban on U.S. beef produced with the aid of growth promotants is yet another attempt to frustrate the will and the process of the WTO and to drag this weary battle on despite a series of legal victories by the U.S. Continued actions like this make a mockery of the WTO’s arbitration procedures and damage the credibility of the WTO.”

The panel will decide whether the United States and Canada are justified in keeping their retaliatory measures in place against the EU. The United States was authorized to impose trade retaliatory measures of some $116.8 million; Canada imposed some $10 million on EU exports in the dispute. The panel will take six months to report.

European Union                                                                         

New WTO Dispute Settlement Panel In Hormone Case

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has set up a dispute settlement panel at the request of the European Union (EU) in the latest round in the hormone ban case. Although it lost its case at the WTO and subsequent appeals because it could not provide scientific evidence that the hormones used in U.S. cattle production were harmful to health, in October 2003, the EU claimed to be in compliance based on EU legislation and what it described as recent scientific studies. At the time USMEF President & CEO Philip Seng commented:

“The statement by the EU that it is now in compliance with the World Trade Organization on its ban on U.S. beef produced with the aid of growth promotants is yet another attempt to frustrate the will and the process of the WTO and to drag this weary battle on despite a series of legal victories by the U.S. Continued actions like this make a mockery of the WTO’s arbitration procedures and damage the credibility of the WTO.”

The panel will decide whether the United States and Canada are justified in keeping their retaliatory measures in place against the EU. The United States was authorized to impose trade retaliatory measures of some $116.8 million; Canada imposed some $10 million on EU exports in the dispute. The panel will take six months to report.