Hormone trafficking

Hormone mafia
Meat mafia

Nature

Illegal hormones are bought by organized criminal groups and sold to veterinarians, chemists and animal feed suppliers. The hormones accelerate animal growth. "Hormone" is an oversimplification; the drugs trafficked include thyroid inhibitors, anabolic steroids, beta-agonists and corticosteroids.

Background

Hormone trafficking emerged as a global concern in the late 20th century, when authorities first detected illicit networks smuggling anabolic steroids and growth hormones across borders. The problem gained prominence with high-profile doping scandals in sports and reports of unregulated hormone use in livestock and cosmetic industries. International agencies, including Interpol and the World Health Organization, have since documented the expanding scale and health risks of hormone trafficking, prompting coordinated monitoring and regulatory responses.

Incidence

In Belgium, the "hormone mafia", said to comprise about 50 people, has been operating since the late 1970s. It obtains drugs from chemical laboratories in countries that were formerly part of the Soviet Union, or buys them via other countries. Attacks on veterinary inspectors in Belgium have been linked publicly to the hormone mafia.

In tests conducted in 1995, 36% of Spanish meat containing stimulants. More than 6% of 1000 Belgian beef steaks tested contained residues from synthetic hormones, and 25% contained suspiciously high levels of clenbuterol, a beta-agonist. Results from France were similar.

Claim

Hormones are a means of fraud, and are a crime against the citizen. However, only 10% of the population is prepared to pay more for food produced without hormones. To feed the other 90%, we have to use intensive farming methods.

The EU's ban of the growth hormone-treated meat fuels the illegal market. Since 1988 we have seen the rise of the hormone mafia and a shift towards a black market trade in substances which have not been tested for safety.

Counter-claim

Hormone trafficking is not an important problem at all. Compared to pressing global issues like climate change, poverty, or infectious diseases, the scale and impact of hormone trafficking are minimal. It receives disproportionate attention, diverting resources from far more urgent matters. The public and policymakers should focus on real threats to health and safety, rather than inflating the significance of a relatively minor and isolated concern like hormone trafficking.