Special niche cattle producers are already working to comply with stiff beef regulations to sell their products in European Union countries, and soon more countries will be regulated under E.U. policies.

The E.U. regulations call for hormone-free production of cattle for their consumer markets, said Roxanne Clemens, managing director for Midwest Agribusiness Trade Research and Information Center (MATRIC). This means that no hormones can be used at any time in the life of the animal.

In 2004 ten more countries will join the European Union, Clem-ens said, making an even larger market that is virtually untouchable to the U.S. beef market.

The European Union has “stringent guidelines for production, harvesting and shipping certified non-hormone treated beef,” said Clemens, program coordinator for the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development at ISU.

Hormone-free animals are those that are raised without the use of growth stimulants and antibiotics, said Ron Wortmann, director of Wortmann Farms a USDA approved hormone-free research farm.

Clemens said although the USDA deems hormone-enhanced meat safe for human consumption, the E.U. believes hormones are “not safe for human consumption because of abuse of growth-promoting hormones which have been tied to reactions among humans.”

Scientific research from the E.U. reports even regulated use may have ill effects, she said.

Currently very little trade is occurring between the E.U. and the U.S. Clemens said this is because of the “additional costs of production, slaughtering and shipping.”

The E.U. began its ban on beef imports containing growth-promoting hormones in 1989, according to a MATRIC Briefing Paper written by Clemens and Bruce A. Babcock.

After this decision by the E.U. the United States then appealed this to the World Trade Organization.

The WTO ruled against the E.U., saying it could not impose these qualifications on meat the E.U. imports from other WTO member countries, Clemens said. Despite the ruling, the E.U. refused to lift the regulations.

In July 1999 the U.S. implemented retaliatory tariffs, Clemens said, “the E.U. decided to pay the tariffs instead of lift the regulations,” she said. The tariffs were designed to even the field by blocking E.U. imports, but researchers say that the U.S. beef industry has the most to lose.

The European Union was set up after the Second World War. It was first comprised of six countries that joined to create “the first concrete foundation of a European federation,” according to http://europa.eu.int/. Ten new members will be part of the fifth wave of membership.

Countries such as Hungry, Latvia and Poland, among others, will soon be subject to the E.U. policies because of their entry into the union.

According to a USDA report, hormones are used on approximately 90 percent of commercial feedlots. It is difficult for the hormone-free producer to keep up with the conventional beef lots, Clemens said.

By using hormones to enhance growth the farmer can “promote faster growth and higher feed efficiencies,” Clemens said. Because of the increased growth rate, hormone using producers spend $15-$40 less per head.

The hormone-free producer also has additional costs, which hormone-using producers do not have. They must obtain certification through the USDA’s Non-hormone Treated Cattle program. Clemens said she estimated, “$3,000 is required for the initial certification process.”

Extra costs are also associated with slaughter and shipping. Clemens said, “Only 2 packing plants, both in Omaha, are certified to slaughter U.S. beef for export to the European Union.”

Because of the reduced sales to the European Union in the past 5 years, many producers have turned to alternative markets to sell their meat, Clemens said.

One of these markets is the U.S. natural beef market. This niche market pays an additional premium for certified non-treated beef, Clemens said.

Wortmann said, “There is a growing demand for non-hormone treated beef, because of health concerns.”

There are many reasons why natural beef consumers choose to eat hormone-free beef. Many people do not want to eat hormone treated beef because of health concerns. Others believe that eating meat that is treated with antibiotics would make the antibiotics that they take for their illnesses less effective, Wortmann said.

Clemens said some U.S. natural beef consumers believe that hormone-free beef is of higher quality. Hormone-free producers are also looking toward the fine dining market, she said.

In order to compete in the U.S markets, hormone-free producers have promoted their high traceability, said Clemens.

“The USDA can trace each animal from calf to slaughterhouse,” she said.