The Final COOL Rule

(A brief refreshed on what COOL is from And Now U Know)

On January 15th, the USDA published the final rule that cements the Country of Origin Labeling Law permanently into the food industry. Changes in the law from the interim final rule include an allowance for visual animal inspections from producers, who can then sign an affidavit stating that if they do not see any foreign markings on the animal, can declare the animal to be of US origin. There is also an updated list of what country name abbreviations are acceptable. If you would like to see an entire list of the changes, the AMS has a handy PDF file here.

Some critics are still confusing the COOL Law with food safety, despite the USDA stating time and time again that food safety has nothing to do with COOL. The Seattle PI even brought in a food safety expert to bash the rule:

"Given the recent scandals about the safety of imported food, it is unacceptable that the rule was approved with an overly broad definition for which foods are 'processed,'" says Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food and Water Watch, a national consumer organization.

In case you need a refresher course, here is the United Fresh Produce Association SVP of Public Policy in an interview with the NSF discussing COOL:

Just as it is important to understand what COOL is, it is important to know what it is not. COOL is NOT a food safety law. Produce can be grown safely in countries around the world, or it can be grown without regard to good agricultural and handling practices. That is not dependent upon a sticker or a label, but upon the commitment of the persons handling that product throughout the distribution chain.

Reaction to COOL, even for those who actually understand the purpose of the law, has been mixed at best. Canada has decided to hold their WTO complaint in light of the changes to the final rule. Their Agricultural Minister Gerry Ritz told reporters:

The new standard "recognizes the reality of the integrated North American livestock industry," by allowing for combined US-Canada labeling, he said of the changes made public earlier this week.

But Nataional Farmers Union President Tom Buis is against the changes to the final rule for those very reasons, stating:

The final rule still contains a loophole that would allow meat packers to use a multiple-countries, or NAFTA, label rather than labeling U.S. products as products of the United States,” he said. “This is misleading to consumers. The intent was to provide country-of-origin labeling, not trade-agreement origin of labeling. If a product is exclusively born, raised and processed in the United States it should be labeled as such.

Drovers.com has more on the industry reactions to the new law in their article.

Regardless of what side of the fence you stand on, the rule goes into effect on March 16th, and fines for not complying are $1,000.00 per infraction. You can read the final rule at the AMS website here.