As George W. Bush was getting ready to depart from the White House, he decided to make one last effort to “stick it to the French” and he raised the tariff on Roquefort over 300 precent, making it virtually impossible for the French to sell their beloved blue-veined cheese in the United States. This means that the price of a kilo of Roquefort will increase from $40 to $130! And while I’m a certified cheese-addict, I think even I would balk at such an outrageous price. The U.S. is apparently at this moment the third largest importer of Roquefort, grossing an annual $8 million in sales, and seeing as the region of Roquefort is entirely dependent on its production of the cheese, this could mean a mayor blow to the village. The reasons behind Bush’s actions? Apparently it’s because the European Union has a ban on beef from hormone-treated animals. Also, the EU has not offered any scientific proof that hormone-treated beef poses a cancer-threat to consumers, and that is why the World Trade Organization has allowed the increased tariff on Roquefort in both America and Canada (because the ban violates trade rules, and that is why America and Canada can sanction it). Meanwhile, the French have stated that they will not be scared into loosening their restrictions on hormone-treated beef. And the Americans? Well, the cheese-lovers are looking pleadingly at their new president in hopes he will improve the French-American relations and eventually bring the price of Roquefort down to an acceptable level. Until then, they will have to either pay the steep price or make do with cheaper and inferior cheeses…