The effects of GATT on food

Contrary to the assumption of the editorial ``GATT Serious,'' Nov. 14, I find the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade fascinating. Once GATT is approved by Congress, the food I buy at the grocery store may no longer meet US food safety standards because the new GATT's rule of ``harmonization'' promotes the lowering of strong food safety laws to weaker international standards.

As a mother of three children, I am fascinated by GATT's ``least restrictive trade'' rule, which prohibits distinguishing products on the basis of how they were produced, thus endangering many recycling laws as well as the Marine Mammal Protection Act, which allows me to buy dolphin-safe tuna. GATT is a trade issue only at first glance. At bottom, it affects essential aspects of our lives: our food, national resources, and working conditions. Kati Mihaly Winchell, Lincoln, Mass.

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