If the World Trade Organization (WTO) sides with Canada and Mexico in their complaint that country-of-origin labeling (COOL) laws in the U.S. put their meat exports at an unfair disadvantage, the U.S. Department of Agriculture should rescind those laws and allow Congress to resolve the issue, said 112 members of Congress in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The letter was written by Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA) and Rep. Rick Crawford (R-AR), ranking member and chairman of the Subcommittee on Livestock, Rural Development, and Credit, respectively. Another 110 of their colleagues also signed on. “If the WTO finds the COOL rule to be non-compliant, the resulting consequences could have a detrimental impact on our economy,” said Costa in a statement. “Congress must be prepared to act and find a solution that maintains a healthy relationship with our trading partners and protects the American economy.” COOL laws mandate that meat products be labeled to tell where the food animals were born, raised and slaughtered. The members’ letter comes on the heels of Tuesday’s D.C. Circuit Court decision to uphold the COOL rule following the American Meat Institute’s appeal of an earlier legal decision supporting the rule. The WTO has reportedly finished its most recent compliance report on COOL set to be released in September, according to the trade publication Washington Trade Daily. That new report apparently still finds a number of problems with the COOL law as it currently exists. The WTO had previously determined the U.S. COOL law incompatible with WTO obligations in Canada and Mexico’s initial complaint. In May 2013, USDA presented an adjusted rule that the two countries also challenged on the same grounds that it put their meat exports at a competitive disadvantage.
The News Desk team at Food Safety News covers breaking developments, regulatory updates, recalls, and key topics shaping food safety today. These articles are produced collaboratively by our editorial staff.
Federal law allows food companies to use chemicals designated as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) without having them subject to review by the Food and Drug Administration. The New York law would help close that loophole.
An agency in the Isle of Man has been told to look again at a food hygiene request after initially refusing to release information.
The Information Commissioner upheld a complaint
More than two-thirds of stores selling fish do not consistently follow food safety regulations, according to inspection findings from the Dutch food agency.
Most violations concerned the failure to list
As part of its enforcement activities, the Food and Drug Administration sends warning letters to entities under its jurisdiction. Some letters are not posted for public view until weeks or
On April 10 the Washington State Department of Health advised the FDA of a recall of certain shellfish because of norovirus-like illnesses associated with consumption of raw oysters.
The recall
Silver Moon LP dba Loard’s Ice Cream of San Leandro, CA, is recalling all products sold in retail-sized packaging because they were distributed without ingredient labeling and therefore they
