If one did not know better, it would seem that the European Union has been stampeded into disunion by herds of mad cows, sick sows, and angry humans. For more than six months the continent’s journals, TV news broadcasts and radio reports have been harping incessantly about dangers in the food supply – sometimes with good reason, sometimes without. Its enough to turn die-hard red meat lovers into chicken enthusiasts, fish lovers, and even vegetarians.

The spread of brain-wasting Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) plaguing cattle, outbreaks of Foot-and-mouth disease among cloven-hoofed animals, and a rash of Foot-in-mouthitis cases which have brought down cabinet ministers and weakened lots of other politicians all have the appearance of being out of control. This has perpetuated the perception that national governments in Europe, let alone the bureaucrats in Brussels, are unable to guarantee food safety. Indeed, some exporters who used to complain vociferously about stringent FDA regulations in the USA are now calling for the establishment of a similar organization in the EU.

The ongoing avalanche of negative publicity in the food sector has ruined the appetites of some European gourmands to the point where they have to go to the inconvenience of crossing the Atlantic to get a decent fillet mignon or chuck roast. I ran into a number of them during the recently held International Boston Seafood Show, where they made nightly beelines to the better known steak houses rather than dine in fish specialty restaurants for which the city is famous.

While certainly understandable, this behavior struck me as rather curious knowing that EU lawmakers have seen fit to deprive their citizens of USA beef imports for a long, long time. The official reason for the ban is that American cattle are fattened with growth-enhancing hormones. Banish the thought that it might have anything to do with providing non-tariff barrier protection to continental farmers.

“Aren’t you afraid that eating a big American T-bone steak may be unhealthy, or that it might even make you brow breasts?” my colleague asked a European epicurean in Boston.

The happy diner chuckled between his ravenous bites of a medium-rare Black Angus, shaking his head sideways. “This is the first steak I have had in months, and it tastes better than the best I’ve eaten in Aberdeen. Please allow me to enjoy it. If growth hormones put me in better touch with my feminine side, so be it.”

That kind of attitude is explained by the current European prohibition against sales of domestic T-bone steaks carved from cattle more than a year old. The ban has been greeted with protests in the Tuscan regions of Italy, where consumption of bone-in beef is a passion among traditionalists. In Florence shoppers are openly defying the EU regulations by buying prime cuts of steak and freezing them for later consumption.

Of course, Europeans traveling in America have long taken the opportunity to dig into high quality, reasonably priced steaks that are taboo at home. Now, sadly but truly, there is another reason to indulge. The hysteria whipped up over mad cows and sick sows has done more to turn delectable old world cuisine upside down than the onslaught of made-in-USA fast food chains that stretch from the UK to Russia. McDonalds boasts 5,000 plus units in the expanding Eurozone. Unfortunately for stockholders, they have not been faring to well lately as hamburger orders have become a casualty of the BSE scare.

While marketing gurus laboring under the Golden Arches have been busy promoting alternative items such as chicken and pollack-based fish sandwiches, maybe the time has come for them to think about rolling out a yellowfin tuna burger. In case a recipe is needed, McMenu meisters might get in touch with AquaCuisine, Inc. of Boise, Idaho (e-mail: twallace@aquacuisine.com). Its Flame grilled tuna Burger (now available in 325g retail packs of four) was the Gold Award winner at the Boston Seafood Show’s New Products 2001 competition on March 27. Not only does it taste good, but the low-salt, sesame-teriyaki flavored burger is good for you. Each 88g pattie contains 1000mg of fortified Omegas-3 fatty acids. Will the Tuna Burger concept sink or swim in the marketplace? If it’s first name is Mac, look for a big splash real fast.

Photo Caption: Relish the idea of Tuna burgers becoming the next big fast food idea? The BSE scare in Europe could give them a push.