Pat Roberts, chairman of the US Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, addressed the Senate last week, calling for a repeal of the COOL labeling requirements.
Last week, Sen. Pat Roberts, chairman of the US Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, presented to the Senate his amendment to repeal mandatory country-of-origin-labeling (COOL) requirements for beef, pork and chicken to prevent Canada and Mexico from imposing billions of dollars in retaliatory tariffs on the US economy.
Roberts urged his colleagues to support the repeal or risk facing $3.2 billion in tariffs being applied to US exports. “This debate isn’t about the merits of a particular labeling program or our opinions about how our beef or pork or chicken should be sold,” Roberts said. “No, this debate is about a simple fact, and facts are stubborn things. Whether you support COOL or oppose COOL, the fact is retaliation is coming unless the Senate acts to stop this program that the WTO [World Trade Organization] has found to be discriminatory.”