Dive briefs:
- new Proposed Regulations from USDA right Restriction “Made in the United States” From labels on meat, poultry and egg products to items derived from animals that were born, raised, slaughtered or processed in the United States.
- The USDA says the new definition will clear up consumer confusion about where food comes from. Currently, all products processed in the United States, whether meat raised elsewhere and imported into the United States for processing and slaughter, or imported into the United States and repackaged, are classified as “rice You can display “domestic”.
- This is one of the pending food label clarifications issued by the federal government in the past few months. This and other regulations are intended to increase consumer knowledge and information.
Dive Insight:
Voluntary “Made in the USA” labeling loopholes have long plagued people in the U.S. meat industry. This proposed rule could be the beginning of more airtight labeling.
The proposed rule, which appeared in the Federal Register this week, comes after three separate petitions asked the USDA to clarify its labeling. In June 2018, the Organization for Competitive Markets and the Grassfed Association of America called for the label to be limited to US-grown products. In October 2019, the American Cattlemen’s Association made a similar request that applies only to beef products. And in June 2021, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association requested that the “Product of USA” label be removed and a broader label added, including “Processed in the USA.”
USDA has commented on all three of these petitions and consumer research Inform the proposed rule of understanding the claim.
“When American consumers buy meat products from the grocery store, they expect the claims on the label to mean what they say,” said USDA Commissioner Tom Vilsack. increase. Proposed Rule Release“These proposed changes are intended to provide consumers with accurate information to make informed purchasing decisions.”
The U.S. Meat Producers Organization is pleased to see the proposed rule.
“USCA believes that the proposed rule finally Since the abolishment of mandatory country of origin labeling in 2015, we have been working to clarify what these voluntary country of origin claims mean. in a written statement“If it says ‘Made in the USA,’ it must be from cattle that only know U.S. soil. Consumers have the right to know where their food is coming from.” there is.
The American Grass-Fed Association said the “Product of America” label means that something can help its members.
Greg Gunthorpe, a producer and AGA board member, said: “Regulations that require products to be born, raised, slaughtered and processed to use are giving domestic farmers and small-scale processors the opportunity to grow grass. It will provide a significant opportunity to compete fairly in the Fed and USDA procurement programs,” the company said in a written statement.
However, several industry groups wanted the proposed rule to go further.
Lobbying group R-CALF USA — Ranchers-Cattlement Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America — said in a statement that the reform would help, but that not requiring beef country labeling would solve the problem entirely. can’t Law enacting this label — which is pending in the U.S. Senate — is the only way the issue can be fully resolved, the group writes.
The United States briefly introduced mandatory country of origin labeling in 2013. Complaints were brought to the World Trade Organization from Canada and Mexico, and if the law remained on the books, the WTO imposed him a $1 billion retaliatory import tariff. urged Congress to repeal it 2015.
Kent Vaccus, NCBA’s executive director of government affairs, said in a statement that the group had been working on a solution for years. I have.
“Simply adding born, raised and harvested requirements to an already broken label cannot provide added value to cattle producers, but rather a real benefit to cattle producers. It undermines the spontaneous, market-driven label,” Bacus writes. “We cannot afford to replace a defective government label with another defective government label.”
Canadian Government Officials Responsible for the U.S. Beef Trade — Marie Claude Bibeaux Minister for Agriculture and Agri-Food, Minister for International Trade for Export Promotion, Small Businesses and Economic Development, Mering — made a statement The country said it would take a close look at the proposed rules and comment on any aspects that could disrupt trade between the two countries.
“Canada will work with the United States to ensure that new definitions and rules will ensure that farmers, processors and consumers in both countries continue to benefit from efficient, stable and competitive markets,” the official said in a statement. said in
This rule is not yet final. A stakeholder has his 60 days to comment, after which the USDA will produce the final version of the rule.
