EU trade regulation for baby food: protecting health or trade?

This article explores the effect of European Union (EU)'s food safety regulations on the trade of baby food products. A large number of medical studies have shown that pesticides and contaminants contribute to various health problems including cancer, lung disease or reproductive, endocrinal and immune system disorders. They also agree that children are more vulnerable to the dangers of pesticides and contaminants because as soon as they start eating solid foods, they eat a limited number of food items most of which are fruits and vegetables. In order to protect the health of the most vulnerable part of the population, the EU's regulations establish that no more than 0.01 mg/kg of any single pesticide residue is permitted in baby food products. In this respect, the EU differs from most of its trading partners, the majority of which do not differentiate food safety regulations according to the consumer population age. The purposes of this paper is to compare the EU regulations on Maximum Residual Level of pesticides to those of its major trading partners through a severity index and quantify the impact of the specific European regulations on the trade of baby food products. Results show that the specific EU regulations may be considered as a tool protecting vulnerable population.