U.S. and 15 others slam EU regulation of farm products at WTO

The United States and 15 other countries launched a broadside of criticism at the European Union on Thursday, saying its "hazard-based" approach to regulating pesticides and other "critical tools" used by farmers was damaging livelihoods worldwide.

Their statement, submitted to the World Trade Organization, said the EU's approach created great uncertainty and diverged from science-based risk assessments, creating disruption that threatened to escalate significantly in coming years.