BRUSSELS—The European Union launched an appeal on Thursday against a World Trade Organisation ruling that it broke trade rules by banning imports of meat treated with growth hormones from the United States and Canada. The EU's executive Commission said in a statement the assessment of a WTO dispute settlement panel in March was "so flawed that the EU has decided to request the Appellate Body of the WTO to overturn it."
The Commission objected to the finding that its rules broke international sanitary and phytosanitary regulations and it said the panel "failed to establish the facts correctly" and relied selectively on scientific experts who lacked "the required impartiality", among other failings.
Brussels was also unhappy that the ruling did not make clear to the United States and Canada that they must remove retaliatory duties they imposed on EU exports.
Shortly after the March ruling, the United States accused the EU of "mischaracterising" the panel's findings and said Washington was not required to remove its retaliatory sanctions in the long-running transatlantic trade row.
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