USDA Publishes Final Details of COOL Program

USDA this week issued a final rule for its mandatory country-of-origin labeling (COOL) program, which applies to beef, pork, lamb, chicken, goat meat, wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish, perishable agricultural commodities, peanuts, pecans, ginseng, and macadamia nuts. USDA had previously published an interim final rule in advance of a September 30, 2008, implementation deadline to incorporate changes required by the 2008 Farm Bill, including the addition of several agricultural commodities.

Effective March 16, 2009, the final rule takes into account public comments on the interim version. In particular, the rule clarifies USDA’s position on multiple countries of origin labeling and eliminates allowances for commodities of U.S. origin to retain this designation if processed or handled in foreign countries. The final rule also upholds a provision criticized by the Ranchers-Cattlemen Legal Fund (RCALF)
that excludes processed food ingredients from COOL regulations.

“Publication of the final rule may alleviate some of the market uncertainty that currently disrupts our U.S.-Canada trade relationship,” a Canadian Pork Council spokesperson was quoted as saying. Canada had filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization over the interim final rule, which Canadian ranchers said discriminated against their livestock. See Meatingplace.com, January 13, 2009.