The World Trade Organization (WTO) has authorized Canada and Mexico to charge the U.S. $1 billion in retaliatory tariffs for country-of-origin labeling (COOL) on meat. Last spring, WTO rejected a U.S. appeal of its decision that COOL unfairly discriminates against meat imports and gives the advantage to domestic meat products. COOL, which went into effect…
USTR Tells WTO That COOL Damages Are Much Lower Than Estimated
Last week, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) filed a legal brief in the World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute over mandatory country-of-origin labeling (COOL), arguing that the $3 billion sought by Canada and Mexico in retaliatory tariffs are a dramatic overestimation of damages. The U.S. requested that the WTO Arbitrator reject the amounts requested by…
Senators Introduce Bill for Voluntary COOL Label
Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and John Hoeven (R-ND) introduced a bill Thursday that would remove certain meats from the mandatory country-of-origin (COOL) labeling program and institute a voluntary label instead. In May, the World Trade Organization rejected a U.S. appeal of its decision that COOL on meat unfairly discriminates against meat imports and give the…
Ban Lifted on Beef Imports From Argentina, Brazil
On Monday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced it is lifting a ban on beef imports from Northern Argentina and 14 of Brazil’s 27 states. But the changes in regulation have some concerned about the risk of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). The agency concluded that Argentina and Brazil are…
Senate Agriculture Committee Mulls Options on COOL
The Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing Thursday to discuss country-of-origin labeling (COOL) for meat, which requires that packages sold in the U.S. indicate the country, or countries, where animals were born, raised and slaughtered. “It doesn’t matter if you’re pro-COOL (and many are) or anti-COOL (and many are), you cannot ignore the fact that…
House Votes to Repeal Country-of-Origin Labeling for Meat
The House of Representatives has voted to repeal country-of-origin labeling (COOL) for beef, pork, and chicken. Texas Republican Rep. Michael Conaway’s Country of Origin Labeling Amendments Act of 2015 passed late Wednesday night by a 300-131 vote. Conaway introduced the bill on May 18 — the same day the World Trade Organization rejected a U.S.…
Presidential Task Force Releases Seafood Fraud Final Action Plan
The Presidential Task Force on Combating Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Seafood Fraud has released its final action plan for implementing the 15 recommendations issued in December. The plan, unveiled Sunday at the Seafood Expo North America in Boston, includes measures to create and expand domestic partnerships to detect black market fishing and…
China Joins List of Countries Restricting U.S. Poultry Imports Due to Avian Flu
On Tuesday, China joined a growing list of countries barring U.S. poultry imports after avian influenza was found in backyard chicken and guinea fowl flocks in Oregon and Washington. More than 30 countries have banned or restricted the import of poultry originating in one or both of those states. China and the 28 members…
Food Fraud: Money Scam and Health Hazard
Despite the common belief that food fraud in the United States is a rarity, the globalized nature of our food supply chain means many of our favorite foods and ingredients travel far and wide before they reach our plates, making adulteration and other types of food fraud a considerate problem here as well. And it’s…
Another Barrier to U.S.-China Chicken Trade Knocked Down
Few, if any, U.S.-born chickens are going to be getting on a boat or plane for processing in China unless and until the little matter of tariffs totaling more than 135 percent goes away. And that may now be occurring, according to U.S. trade experts. U.S. exports of 613,000 metric tons of broiler meat to…