Country-of-Origin Labels Coming Soon

Last updated Thursday, September 25, 2008 6:54 PM CDT in Business

By Kim Souza
THE MORNING NEWS

As an independent cattleman, Simpson said the product labeling is only half the issue. He said there is a cost to bear with the traceability requirements that small producers are being asked to follow and sees the consumer being forced to bear that extra burden.

Cattle producers like Simpson who plan to sell their cattle to packers must provide an affidavit claiming first-hand knowledge accurately identifying the animals in the transaction, according to Johnny Gunsaulis, agent for the UA Cooperative Extension Service in Fayetteville.

U.S. meat packers like Tyson Foods Inc. are also affected by the new rules.

The Springdale meat giant said it fully intends to abide by the new labeling rules, while also making sure to continues to meet the wishes of its customers.

"We believe meeting the new labeling requirements will be fairly simple for our chicken business, since the poultry products we sell in the U.S. are all domestically produced. As a result, Tyson chicken products subject to the new rule will be bear a 'Product of USA' label," said Gary Mickelson, company spokesman.

The U.S.D.A. said the labeling program requires retailers to ensure that commodities are labeled at point of sale. Packers and processors that supply these retailers must provide them with the country-of-origin information. Beef (including veal) must be labeled with country-of-origin information if it is sold at retail and is a muscle cut or ground product. Beef products are exempt if they are sold at food service or the meat product is an ingredient in a processed product.

Critics say consumers may never know where the hamburger meat they eat while dining at McDonalds or any other restaurant actually comes from, because of the food service exemption.

Other critics such as the National Farmers Union have taken issue with a loophole they say has been created for meatpackers.

Tyson Foods admits the labels for beef are more complicated than chicken, because the company procures hogs and cattle for slaughter in the open market.

Troxel said cattlemen are most concerned because of separate labeling categories that were created in the latter revisions of the bill that allows co-mingling of products from different countries.

Animals that are born and/or raised in a different country then harvested in the U.S. will be labeled as a multiple-origin product and will identify all relevant countries. Meat products imported from another country would be labeled as a product of that country. The third category covers animals raised in another country and imported to the United States for immediate harvest, according to the U.S.D.A. Web site.

"While a majority of the cattle and hogs processed by American meatpackers like Tyson Foods were born and raised in the U.S., USDA data indicates approximately 2 to 2. 5 million cattle and 8 to 10 million hogs slaughtered by the U.S. meat industry each year originated in Canada or Mexico," Mickelson said, "rather than go to the significant added expense of segregating livestock and finished product."

He said Tyson believes its customers and consumers will be best served if the company simply labels most of its affected retail products as coming from "multiple countries of origin."

He added that if Tyson has customers who demand beef or pork labeled as a "Product of USA" and are willing to pay for the added cost of segregating and labeling the product, the company will make an effort to provide it.

Tyson competitor Smithfield Foods said it has decided to work only with producers able to provide hogs "born and raised in the U.S.," so that all Smithfield products will bear that label.

"It will be interesting to see how consumers view the new information and if it has any bearing on their buying habits," Troxel said. "I suspect given the economic stresses bearing down on most consumers, price will likely be the trump card."

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