9 Dodgy Food Practices Banned in Europe but Just Fine Here
May 29, 2013
Story at-a-glance
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Thanks to a largely industry-beholden government and
regulatory system, Americans are not being afforded many of
the same food protections given to Europeans
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Examples of chemicals and drugs allowed in US foods and
agriculture but banned in Europe include the
endocrine-disrupting weed killer Atrazine, arsenic in
chicken feed, antibiotics as agricultural growth promoters
and chlorine washes for poultry carcasses
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The US also embraces water fluoridation and genetically
modified (GM) foods, two practices that are much less
accepted, and in some cases banned, in Europe
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If you want to avoid these questionable ingredients,
additives and unethical practice and you live in the US,
ditching processed foods entirely is the best option
Banned in Europe in 2003, Syngenta's weed killer Atrazine is a potent
endocrine disruptor that, according to UC Berkeley Professor Tyrone
Hayes, “chemically castrates and feminizes wildlife and reduces
immune function in both wildlife and laboratory rodents.” The
chemical has also been found to induce breast and prostate cancer,
retard mammary development and induce abortion in lab animals, with
studies in humans suggesting similar risks. In the US, Atrazine is
widely used and has become a common drinking water contaminant.
By Dr. Mercola
Many Americans believe the US is at the forefront of technology
and advancements to protect its citizens’ health. But, time and
again we’re seeing that Americans are actually less healthy
than their peers overseas.
In fact, despite spending twice the amount per capita on
health care, the US recently ranked last in a health and
mortality analysis of 17 developed nations.1
In many cases, adhering to government-sponsored health and
dietary guidance has led Americans astray but so, too, has exposure
to harmful substances and practices that continue to receive the
“green light” in the US while being banned in Europe.
Thanks to a largely industry-beholden government and regulatory
system, Americans are simply not being afforded the same protections
given to Europeans.
9 Dangerous Practices Banned in Europe but Allowed in the US
Mother Jones recently highlighted seven dodgy practices
banned in Europe but allowed in the US,2
and I added in a couple of my own. In terms of looking out for your
safety, this list gives an eye-opening perspective on where US
regulatory agencies’ true interests lie.
1. Atrazine
Banned in Europe in 2003, Syngenta's weed killer Atrazine is
a potent endocrine disruptor that, according to UC Berkeley
Professor Tyrone Hayes, “chemically
castrates and feminizes wildlife and reduces immune
function in both wildlife and laboratory rodents.” The
chemical has also been found to induce breast and prostate
cancer, retard mammary development and induce spontaneous
abortion in lab animals, with studies in humans suggesting
similar risks.
In the US, Atrazine is widely used and has become a common
drinking water contaminant. Syngenta already had to pay
$105 million to settle a class-action lawsuit in which water
utilities in the Midwest claimed Atrazine had contaminated their
drinking water.3
Atrazine has been banned in the European Union—including
Switzerland, where it's manufactured—as well as several
Wisconsin counties in the US. However, the US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) still allows its use and is only going
to begin conducting a registration review, “EPA’s periodic
reevaluation program for existing pesticides,” in mid-2013.4
2. Arsenic in Chicken, Turkey and Pig Feed
Arsenic-based drugs are approved for use in animal feed in
the US because they make animals grow quicker and make the meat
appear pinker (i.e. "fresher"). The US Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) has stated these products are safe because
they contain organic arsenic, which is less toxic than
the other inorganic form, which is a known carcinogen.
The problem is, scientific reports surfaced stating that the
organic arsenic could transform into inorganic arsenic, which
has been found in elevated levels in supermarket chickens. The
inorganic arsenic also contaminates manure where it can
eventually migrate into drinking water and may also be causing
heightened arsenic levels in US rice.
In 2011, Pfizer announced it would voluntarily stop marketing
its arsenic-based feed additive Roxarsone, but there are still
several others on the market. Several environmental groups have
filed a lawsuit against the FDA calling for their removal from
the market. In the European Union, meanwhile, arsenic-based
compounds have never been approved as safe for animal
feed.
3. Poultry Litter in Cow Feed
Chicken litter, a rendered down mix of chicken manure, dead
chickens, feathers and spilled feed, is marketed as a cheap feed
product for cows. The beef industry likes it because it's
cheaper than even corn and soy, so an estimated 2 BILLION pounds
are purchased each year in the US.
However, any cow that eats chicken litter may also be
consuming various beef products intended for chickens – raising
concerns about Mad Cow Disease. And it's not only the spilled
feed that's the problem; the infectious agent can also be passed
through the chicken manure as well. In the US, the use of
poultry litter in cow feed is unrestricted. Europe banned all
forms of animal protein, including chicken litter, in cow feed
in 2001.
4. Chlorine Washes for Poultry Carcasses
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is rolling out new
rules that would permit poultry producers to put all the poultry
through an antimicrobial wash, using chlorine and other
chemicals to kill pathogens. We already have a problem with
antibiotics causing antibiotic-resistant ”super germs” when used
in the animals’ feed, and this could likely make the problem
even worse.
Workers in the plants have also reported health problems from
the chemical washes, including asthma and other respiratory
problems. In the European Union, the use of chlorine washes is
not only banned, but they won’t even accept US poultry that’s
been treated with these antimicrobial sprays.
5. Antibiotics as Growth Promoters on Livestock Farms
Agricultural uses account for about 80 percent of all
antibiotic use in the US, so it's a MAJOR source of
human antibiotic consumption. Animals are often fed antibiotics
at low doses for disease prevention and growth promotion, and
those antibiotics are transferred to you via meat, and even via
the manure used as crop fertilizer. Feeding livestock
continuous, low-dose antibiotics creates a perfect storm for
widespread disease proliferation -- and, worse yet,
antibiotic-resistant disease.
The FDA has long held -- since 1977 in fact -- that
administering low doses of antibiotics to livestock, as is
common among Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), was
inappropriate, yet they continue to pander to the drug industry
and are allowing the practice to continue.
The FDA says it will focus its efforts on voluntary reform in
the realm of antimicrobial use, which means the industry would
have to decide to stop using low-dose antibiotics in animal feed
on their own -- a measure they have been vehemently opposed to
because the antibiotics make the animals grow faster, which
increases their profit margins. In Europe, all antibiotics used
in human medicine are banned in agriculture, and no antibiotics
can be used for growth-promoting purposes.
6. Ractopomine and Other Pharmaceutical Growth Enhancers
in Animal Feed
Ractopamine is banned in 160 countries, including Europe,
Taiwan and China. If imported meat is found to contain traces of
the drug, it is turned away, while fines and imprisonment result
for its use in banned countries. Yet, in the United States an
estimated 60-80 percent of pigs, 30 percent of ration-fed
cattle, and an unknown percentage of turkeys are pumped full of
this drug in the days leading up to slaughter because it
increases protein synthesis.
In other words, it makes animals more muscular … and this
increases food growers’ bottom line. Adding insult to injury, up
to 20 percent of ractopamine remains in the meat you buy from
the supermarket, and this drug is also known to cause serious
disability, including trembling, broken limbs and an inability
to walk, in animals.
It’s also killed more pigs than any other animal drug on the
market. While Europe has remained steadfast on its Ractopamine
ban, including refusing imported meat treated with it, the US is
actively trying to get other nations to change their minds and
accept Ractopamine-treated pork.
7. Gestation Crates
Gestation crates are two-foot-wide cages where breeding pigs
spend nearly their entire lives, unable to even turn around.
Commonly used on CAFOs, the crates are the definition of
inhumane and cause severe stress to the animals, who in some
cases will resort to chewing the bars of the cages incessantly,
causing them become covered in blood.
While several US pork producers, including Smithfield,
Cargill and Hormel, have pledged to phase the crates out, and
fast-food chains including McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s and
Subway have promised to stop buying from pork producers who use
them, the practice remains widespread in the US. Europe,
however, banned gestation crates entirely, effective this year.
8. Water Fluoridation
Many do not realize that fluoride
is a drug that is available only with a prescription. Yet it's
added to municipal water supplies used by more than 180 million
Americans, including infants and the elderly without any
attention to personalized dosing or potential interactions.
Swallowing fluoride has been shown to cause weakened bones,
bone cancer, hyperactivity and/or lethargy, lowered thyroid
function, lowered IQ, dementia, kidney issue, arthritis and
more, while studies have failed to show benefits for preventing
cavities when taken internally. Cities around the US spend
millions adding fluoride to communal water supplies each year,
yet most European countries do not fluoridate their
water.
9. Genetically Modified (GM) Foods
The European Union has historically taken a strict, cautious
stance regarding GM crops, much to the chagrin of biotech giant
Monsanto and in stark contract to the US. For instance, while GM
crops are banned in several European countries, and all
genetically modified foods and ingredients have to be labeled,
the US has recently begun passing legislation that protects
the use of GM seeds and allows for unabated expansion,
in addition to the fact that GM ingredients do not have to be
labeled.
Virtually all of the claims of benefit of GM crops –
increased yields, more food production, controlled pests and
weeds, reductions in chemical use in agriculture,
drought-tolerant seeds -- have not materialized while evidence
pointing to their
serious risks for human health and the environment continues
to grow.
Do You Want REAL Food for Your Family?
The list above is only a partial one. There are, unfortunately,
many other examples where the US has sold out to industry at the
expense of its citizens’ health, while other countries have chosen
to take a much more precautionary or ethical stance. For instance,
food additives banned in other countries yet allowed in the US
include various food dyes, the fat substitute Olestra, brominated
vegetable oil, potassium bromate (aka brominanted flour),
Azodicarbonamide, BHA, BHT, rBGH and rBST. Europe has also recently
banned animal testing for cosmetics and personal hygiene products, a
practice that is still allowed in the US.
If you want to avoid these questionable ingredients, additives
and unethical practices and you live in the US, ditching processed
foods entirely is the best option. If you live in Europe you may
have more options than Americans, as you may be able to find some
processed foods that do not contain any synthetic additives
(although non-processed is still highly preferable). About 90
percent of the money Americans spend on food is spent on processed
foods, so there is massive room for improvement in this area for
most people.
Swapping your processed-food diet for one that focuses on fresh
whole foods is a necessity if you value your health. For a
step-by-step guide to make this a reality in your own life, whether
you live in the US or elsewhere, simply follow the advice in my
optimized
nutrition plan, starting with the
beginner
plan first.
© Copyright 1997-2013 Dr. Joseph Mercola. All Rights Reserved.
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