¿As a Journal Editor for over twenty-five years I have read a lot about the European Union. I
am often asked 'what are the major gaps in EU research?' My answer is always 'implementation'.
Eva Thomann's book makes a major contribution to EU implementation studies. She brings really
fresh thinking to the field. This is an important book for all students of the EU and of policy
implementation.¿Jeremy Richardson Co-Editor of the Journal of European Public Policy This book
sheds light on the patterns causes and consequences of the ¿customization¿ of European Union
(EU) policies. Even if they comply member states interpret and adapt EU rules in very diverse
ways when putting them into practice. We can think of and measure this diversity as a
phenomenon of regulatory change along the implementation chain. The book explores what explains
customization and what it means for providing policy solutions to shared problems. It studies
the implementation of EU food safety policies in Austria Germany France the United Kingdom
and Switzerland using innovative qualitative comparative techniques. After looking at the role
of prominent compliance arguments and the ¿logics of action¿ for customization the study
assesses how differing degrees of customization affect the success of the implementation. The
book provides a new evidence-based perspective on ¿gold-plating¿ and better regulation in
Europe for scholars students and practitioners of policy implementation European integration
and Europeanization alike.
