Canadian Meat Laced With Drugs

Evidence of rampant drug use in livestock has Europeans seeking to ban Canadian beef and pork.

A European Union audit released by the Canadian Health Coalition reveals uncontrolled use of cancer-causing hormones, antibiotics, endocrine disruptions and other agro-chemicals in meat.

Of particular concern is the uncontrolled and abusive use in Canadian cattle of the following growth hormones banned in Europe: Estradiol, estradio benzoate, testosteron propionat, progesterone, Zeranol, trenbolone acetate and MGA.

These drugs are known to initiate and promote cancer. Prepubertal children are exposed to the greatest risk. The audit also documented widespread abuse of antibiotics in farm animals including the carcinogen carbadox.

"Canadians--especially our children--must be protected from cancer-causing drugs in meat," says Kathleen Connors, president of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions and chairwoman of the Canadian Health Coalition. "The situation calls for immediate action by the Prime Minister. The federal government must return to its proper role as the guardian of public health."

The allegations are not entirely new. Canada was warned by the EU in an earlier audit in May 1998, but ignored the call for immediate corrective measures. In the recent detailed report the auditors openly question the competency of this country's regulators, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and food branch of Health Canada. They point to a number of "very serious deficiencies" in the regulatory framework and in the elemental testing and tracking records.

For a full text of the audit visit the Canadian Health Coalition Web site < healthcoalition.ca >.