WRITTEN QUESTION E-0731/96 by Hiltrud Breyer (V) to the Commission (26 March 1996)

Subject: Rejection of imports into the EU of meat from hormone-treated animals from the US

1. Can the Commission list the measures to boost productivity in livestock production which are permitted in the US in the case of cows, bulls, bullocks, young animals, and female and male calves? If so, can this information be passed on to the author of this question?

2. How, in what manner, how often, in what doses, at what age and how long before the animals are slaughtered may growth-promoting hormones be used in the US?

3. Does the Commission have information concerning:

a) the way and channels via which US farmers can obtain hormones to boost productivity;

b) the role of veterinary surgeons in the use of hormones to help fatten up animals in the US;

c) the institution in the US which is responsible for monitoring the proper use of such preparations;

d) the measures the US has taken to prevent the use of unauthorized hormones;

e) the extent to which measures to control quantity, quality and frequency differ from those applied in the EU?

4. Can the Commission list the scientific studies with which the US seeks to prove that treatment with the various growth-boosting hormones does not produce any undesirable changes in the meat's many component substances?

5. Does the Commission know which endocrine are affected by the various growth-boosting hormones?

6. Does the Commission intend to submit any of these questions to US representatives in the course of the WTO negotiations and ask for clarification?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission (20 May 1996)

1. To the best of our knowledge, stock breeders in the US are authorized to fatten their cattle and sheep with natural hormones (oestradiol, testosterone, progesterone) and hormones known as xenobiotics, which are not naturally present in animals (zeranol, trenbolone, melengestrol acetate). The US does not authorize beta-agonists such as clenbuterol even in therapeutic medicinal form.

Authorization and conditions of sale are looked at on a product-by-product basis in the US. The Commission will try to obtain the most recent update and send it on to the Honourable Member.

2. Anabolic substances are mainly used on young steers or heifers, suckled or fattened on feedlot between the age of twelve and twenty-four months. Such cattle may receive a number of implants during the fattening period. Melengestrol acetate, used only for fattening heifers, is administered as a food additive. Other substances are used in the form of an implant injected behind the ear.

Waiting periods vary from one substance to another (60 days for natural hormones and trenbolone, 48 hours for melengestrol acetate, none at all for zeranol).

3a) Growth promotants are freely available to farmers from agricultural suppliers, supermarkets and by post.

3b) There is no requirement for any veterinary involvement.

3c) The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) food safety and inspection service is responsible for checking that anabolic substances are used in accordance with the rules drawn up by the Food and Drug Administration.

3d) It is illegal in the United States to use substances as growth promotants unless they are authorised. The illegal use of substances falls under the general law of the United States and general measures to detect irregular activities. From time to time, some illegal substances are included in the USDA's annual programme of residue testing.

3e) The Community controls cover more species and more substances than the United States controls, and require a higher rate of sampling. Furthermore, the Community controls are applied throughout the marketing chain from manufacturers through distributors and farmers to meat producers, whereas the United States controls apply only to the end product.

4-5. A large number of medicinal substances are approved for use as growth promotants in cattle in the United States. They include hormones, antibiotics, antiparasitics and others. A description of the overall situation in the United States, as well as scientific papers and lists of references, is available in the proceedings of the scientific conference on growth promotion in meat production, held in Brussels in November 1995. A copy of the proceedings will be provided to the Honourable Member as soon as it is available.

6. As indicated above, the Commission is aware of the relevant United States legislation. However, in recent discussions with United States representatives the Commission has solicited more comprehensive and detailed up-to-date information.