European Union-Hormones and US beef.

EUROPEAN UNION-MORE TIME FROM UNITED STATES.

The United States and European Union agreed Wednesday to extend discussions involving a decades-old beef dispute and postpone retaliatory U.S. duties on EU products, according to a report by Reuters.

"The EU and the U.S. have agreed to extend the deadline for the retaliatory actions by at least two weeks until May 8," an EU source was quoted as saying. "Talks will begin in earnest on Monday in Geneva."

Last month, Washington decided to delay the duties until April 23 after Brussels offered a deal that would double from 11,500 metric tons the quota for non-hormone-treated U.S. beef in Europe in exchange for eliminating the U.S. duties on EU products.

EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk reportedly are discussing a deal that could expand the quota to 50,000 metric tons in three separate phases in exchange for eliminating the tariffs, according to Reuters.

A big sticking point, however, is that antimicrobial washes used in the United States are prohibited in the European Union.