Congress Turns Attention to Where Your Food Comes From

Despite a five-year-old program that requires meat and other foods to carry country of origin labeling (COOL), it seems that most consumers don't have a clue about where their food (such as peanuts, fruits, vegetables and certain cuts of meat) actually comes from. Turns out that the Department of Agriculture never fully put the country of origin label law in place. It was passed by Congress years ago but has been endlessly postponed under pressure from food industries. And, any action to put the law into full on practice had been delayed until 2008. Grocery stores, meatpacking companies and other business that get products to your store shelves are opposed to COOL claiming that the effort needed to track the food combined with the required paperwork is "too burdensome and would cause them to raise their prices." Recent increased U.S. complaints about tainted seafood and other products from China have spurred Congress on to readdress the safety of our nation's food supply. This coupled with consumer group concerns over the issue of knowing exactly where there food comes from has forced government to take action and resurrect the label law. House support for COOL is working towards getting the law into effect next year.

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