November 19, 2007

 

US and EU to resolve dispute on poultry ban

 

 

US and EU agreed to resolve the long-standing dispute that blocks US chicken exports to the EU market, as per the November 9 declaration issued after the Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC).

 

EU agreed to "definitely resolve" the ban by the next US-EU Summit which is scheduled next year. The agreement somehow fell short of US demand to resolve the issue during last week's meeting.

 

The US is complaining that the EU has delayed its long-promised legislation that it would permit the use of four anti-microbial agents in chicken processing, even though the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) found them safe in 2005.

 

However, under existing EU legislation, the use of anti-microbial treatments (AMT) on food of animal origin is not allowed.

 

Emer Taylor, spokeswoman for the EC Directorate General for Health and Consumer Protection, said that this is due to EU's concern that AMT could compromise hygiene practices.

 

US processing plants use hyperchlorinated water as an antimicrobial treatment, which the EU has rejected tagging it as a cancer-causing agent.

 

In 2005, the EU seemed ready to accept alternative anti-microbial treatments and changing the law that lifted the existing prohibition on their use in principle.

 

Back in 2005, EFSA ruled that the use of chlorine dioxide, trisodium phosphate, acidified sodium chloride and peroxyacids in chicken processing posed no safety hazards to humans.

 

However, EFSA ruled in 2004 that antimicrobials cannot be used as a remedy for poor hygiene practices in poultry farms. According to EFSA, the use of antimicrobials should be discouraged as they can cause bacteria such as salmonella which can become resistant to treatments.

 

The situation has since raised potential problems about the impact of these agents on the environment and promoting antimicrobial resistance in bacteria.

 

Taylor said that before any possible proposal allowing AMT use for poultry meat could be considered, the Commission must be able to fully eliminate any concerns about the risks these treatments may pose.