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Tyson, Cargill and the American Meat Institute (AMI) lost another bid to keep you from knowing the country-of-origin of the fresh beef, pork, lamb and poultry you buy from the grocery store. On July 29, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia unanimously upheld the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s authority to issue rules requiring country-of-origin labels (COOL) on meat and poultry products, and refused to block the rules.
“This court decision is a great win for consumers and independent farmers and ranchers who have pushed for labeling for over a decade,” said Mabel Dobbs, Chair of WORC’s Ag and Food Campaign Team. “The ruling preserves the ability of consumers to make informed choices about the meat they buy and consume and of America’s independent livestock producers to differentiate their meat products from their foreign competitors. Let’s hope AMI gets the message that USDA has the authority to ensure consumers have access to this information and that farmers and ranchers support country-of-origin labels.”
WORC and several allied organizations filed “friend of the court” briefs in support of USDA.
