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Action Alert: Tell the House of Representatives not to delay COOL!

The 2002 Farm Bill established mandatory country of origin labeling (COOL) for meat by 2004. The labels would be found on food sold in grocery stores, and would state what country the meat came from. This kind of labeling could benefit both consumers, who will be able to make an informed choice and buy food produced closer to home and/or from countries with high food safety standards, and producers, who need a way to identify their crops and livestock as products of the United States.

Since the 2002 Farm Bill, corporate agribusiness, especially the meat and grocery industries, have used numerous tactics to delay COOL and hope to ultimately kill the labeling. Indeed, Congress already successfully delayed its implementation until 2006. Early this month, COOL opponents introduced the Meat Promotion Act of 2005, which would switch country of origin labeling into a voluntary program. The House Appropriations Agricultural Committee thankfully did not include this voluntary legislation in the appropriations bill, but they instead decided to delay mandatory COOL once again, until 2007. 

Important Points:

---Voluntary COOL does NOT have the support of commodity industries covered by the bill.  In fact, over 170 agriculture and consumer groups support mandatory COOL, including one of the largest farm organizations and the 3 largest consumer organizations.

--- Every consumer survey conducted clearly indicates an overwhelming demand and even a willingness to pay a premium for the information provided by a mandatory COOL program.

--- Voluntary COOL is currently available and has been for a number of years, yet companies that import cheaper, often lower-quality food products have been unwilling to participate.  Voluntary COOL is like having a voluntary speed limit -- it is not realistic!

This continual delay is unacceptable! Consumers deserve to know where the food comes from, so they can make thoughtful choices.

Take Action! Send an email to the House Appropriations Committee, urging them to implement COOL in 2006, and not to delay it for another year.

Also, Representatives are in their home districts for a week starting Memorial Day weekend. If you see your Representative, let them know that mandatory COOL is important to you.

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