For instance, inspections of fruit and vegetable have been cut from 8 percent to less than 2 percent of shipments. Thousands suffered severe diarrhea and vomiting in 1997 and 1998 after eating tainted raspberries from Guatemala. In early 1999, thirteen Floridians contracted typhoid fever after drinking imported fruit juice. Standards Weakened To increase international food trade, the WTO pressures countries to lower their strong food safety standards to comply with weaker international standards. For instance, the WTO recently ordered Europe to lift its ban on American beef treated with growth hormones.
Some scientists believe that hormone residues in beef contribute to rising breast cancer rates.
So European regulators banned hormone-treated beef rather than expose large numbers of people to a potential health risk. Under WTO rules, however, food safety officials must prove conclusively that a food product is risky before they take action to protect the public. They can no longer take precautionary measures based on preliminary scientific evidence to prevent an emerging risk. The US challenge to the European standard sets a dangerous precedent that could one day force the US to lower its own food safety standards. For instance, to protect children who are more vulnerable to pesticides in their food than adults, the US has set very stringent standards for pesticide residues on fresh fruits and vegetables.