By Bob Condor

If herbal medicine research were to be a stock car race rather than a scientific endeavor, then Europe would have lapped the U.S. a time or three over the last couple of decades. European countries, especially Germany, have been leaders in standardizing herbal remedies, making them available to the general public and rating their effectiveness.

Eco-activists would say the same about Europe’s inclination to go green. Sustainable construction and clean-air initiatives have been de rigueur on that …