C Wolfe
Bloomington INDec. 28
Times Pick
I have an interesting example that flows in the other direction. Once when my family was especially broke, I bought frozen mussels in a white wine sauce from, um, Walmart. I couldn't understand how they could be imported from Ireland so cheaply. At under $5, they were a tasty and inexpensive luxury during a hard time. The ingredients were simple and straightforward (mussels, white wine, butter, salt, maybe one other). I bought them again when we had a family member visiting from Ireland—one who happened to be an exec with a consumer affairs nonprofit and who had worked with EU food laws. I showed him the package they came in and said I was curious how they could be imported here so cheaply. The alarming answer was that shellfish from that particular bay in Ireland couldn't be sold in the EU because it was considered too polluted. I've often wondered since then what other products are dumped in the US to take advantage of our pro-business, exploit-the-consumers regulations.
