010351 EU Says US Went Too Far With Meat Ban

Washington - Washington went too far in banning shipments of live animals and raw meat from the entire European Union because only Britain and France have confirmed outbreaks of the highly contagious foot- and-mouth disease, according to one EU official.

Gerry Kiely, agriculture counselor for the European Commission's delegation in Washington, criticized the United States for its ban on more than $400 million worth of meat products from the 15-member EU. The U.S. action prompted other nations to follow suit, he said.

“An all-out ban in our view is disproportionate and it's the simple option,” Kiely said.

“Our concern is not just implications of trade with the United States,” he said. “On issues such as this, where the U.S. leads, there is always the risk of others following and its effect on other markets.”

The U.S. government announced its ban after the foot-and-mouth virus jumped from Britain into France. Canada, Australia, and other nations immediately followed suit.

Foot-and-mouth disease cripples pigs, cattle, sheep and goats for months, and sharply reduces milk and meat production. The virus, which rarely endangers human, is easily spread on clothing, car tires and by the wind.

Britain has been forced to destroy more than 130,000 farm animals infected with the disease to stop its spread. Sports events have been canceled, and highway checkpoints set up in affected areas.

“To my knowledge nobody with an outbreak of this disease has put in place measures as draconian as we have,” Kiely said.

The United States has been free of foot-and-mouth disease since 1929.

U.S. officials have given little specifics on how long the ban would last, but said it would continue until the disease was at least contained and under control.

“I think by the next few days it will be clear whether the disease has been stopped on continental Europe,” Kiely said.

“If there are no new cases outside of the areas already affected, we see no reason that we can't rapidly move toward a regionalized approach.”

On Wednesday, EU Food Safety Commissioner David Byrne spoke by telephone with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman about the situation. Kiely said the talks were “useful, cordial and constructive.”

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