Avoiding a government shutdown, Congress passed the $1.1 trillion Omnibus Appropriations bill earlier this month that will fund the government through 2016. The food industry hoped to attach two riders to the bill, one for the repeal of mandatory country of origin (COOL) labeling requirements and the other to prohibit state labeling of genetically modified organisms. Although the GMO labeling rider was left out of the bill, the COOL requirements for a label to be placed on meat packages detailing where an animal was born, raised and slaughtered were repealed.
“We are enormously grateful that lawmakers have included language in the bill to repeal mandatory country of origin labeling for certain meat products,” says Barry Carpenter, president and CEO of the North American Meat Institute. “Our elected leaders recognize the need for the United States to live up to its international trade obligations. This Congressional action is an important step in avoiding the financial harm so many industries would incur if Canada and Mexico initiated the tariffs sanctioned by the WTO’s ruling earlier this month.”