EU bans US corn feed

[donsu]

http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,351921,00.html


Stalking Genetically Modified Corn

Since last Friday, the EU has banned the import of US corn feed. The new embargo has further strained a trade relationship already tense over genetically modified food, Airbus subsidies, and the weapons embargo against China.

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From now on, the EU will require an analytical report from an accredited lab for all corn imports from the US. The report must unequivocally guarantee that the contents do not include any Bt10 corn, a genetically modified corn variant from the Swiss company Syngenta. The plant has a gene that makes it resistant to the antibiotic Ampicillin -- and it is not certified in either the US or Europe. The fear is that if humans consume animals that have been fed with the corn, they could develop immunities to antibiotics.

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Chief among the products hit by the quasi-embargo is corn gluten feed, of which approximately 4 million tons are sent to the EU every year. The sales loss might amount to nearly $350 million. Other countries, including Japan, are now considering whether they will follow the draconian EU measures as well.

In addition to the ban on feed, the US faces recalls, actions for liability as well as enormous damage to the reputation of US corn. A similar accident with Starlink brand genetic corn cost the US economy over a billion dollars in 2001. The subsequent costs could be much higher this time, especially if until-now lethargic US consumers begin to question the safety of genetically modified varieties of grain.

The nonchalant behavior of the Americans infuriated the environmental protection authorities in Brussels and Berlin more than anything else. The US Department of Agriculture knew about the illegal Bt10-infused corn since December 2004. Officials remained silent though, until the science magazine Nature reported the incident at the end of March.
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nonchalant behavior of the americans infuriate me too.

tick, tick, tick

[EC]

1. I figured this was coming

when we refused to label products for export to the EU. I also figured it was something in our food that was causing these immunities to anti-biotics here.