Thune resurrects MCOOL
South Dakota Senator and US Senate Majority Leader John Thune this week introduced the American Beef Labeling Act, which would re-instate mandatory Country of Origin Labeling for beef through Senate Bill 421.
The bipartisan bill claims already claims several co-sponsors including U.S. Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), and John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.).
In an op-ed piece, Thune says he has long been a supporter of MCOOL for beef and that he has found a fellow advocate in President Trump’s selection for Secretary of Agriculture.
“Brooke Rollins grew up on a family-run farm. She understands the needs of farmers and ranchers, and I was pleased that she expressed a willingness in her confirmation hearing to work with me to reinstate MCOOL for beef,” said Thune.
“I supported provisions in both the 2002 and 2008 farm bills that required MCOOL for beef. Unfortunately, in 2015, the World Trade Organization (WTO) struck down America’s labeling requirements. Since then, I’ve worked with many of my colleagues in Congress and successive administrations to restore country of origin labeling for beef. While I appreciate recent U.S. Department of Agriculture changes limiting the voluntary ‘Product of the USA’ label to beef born, raised, slaughtered, and processed in the United States, there is still more work to be done,” Thune said in the opinion piece.
National agricultural groups remain split on the issue with the National Farmers Union, U.S. Cattlemen’s Association and R-CALF USA expressing support for the bill, while National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, its affiliates, and the National Farm Bureau have historically opposed the measure.
The South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association President, shared the following comment via e-mail:
“Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL) was repealed by Congress in 2015 because it violated US commitments in the World Trade Organization and nearly triggered $1 billion in WTO-sanctioned tariffs from Canada and Mexico. Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) is not a food safety mechanism — it is a marketing program,” said Warren Symens, President of the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association. “The SDCA has always supported voluntary COOL. All beef sold in the United States is inspected by the United States Department of Agriculture for safety, and quality should be the primary focus in discussions about labeling. While some consumers seek source-verified beef, voluntary programs currently exist to meet that demand, allowing producers to add value while being trade compliant,” said Symens. The South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association is an affiliate of the NCBA.
R-CALF USA COOL Committee Chairman Mike Schulz of Kansas is hopefuly the initiative will gain enough steam to pass the full Senate.
He said that the WTO panel that ruled against MCOOL a decade ago has been defunct for years. “President Trump dismantled that panel in his first term and they haven’t filled their seats again,” said Schultz, who also explained that the panel was not in a position to enforce any rules or laws, but was simply allowing a “trade threat.”
“I explain to people, don’t panic over the WTO. They can’t take any action – it was just a trade threat – this is like playing a game like chess – with move and countermoves.”
Schultz says that labeling US beef doesn’t require tracking all US cattle because all imported cattle are branded with an M (Mexican cattle) or a CAN (Canadian cattle) and all imported beef should be labeled, so packers and processors simply need to keep track of and mark the imported product, and the US product will be obvious “by default.”
The USCA also backs the legislation. “United States Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) commends Majority Leader Thune for introducing the American Beef Labeling Act,” USCA President Justin Tupper said. “His leadership in restoring truth to labeling is a critical step toward ensuring transparency for U.S. consumers in the marketplace. This legislation puts U.S. producers first and we look forward to collaborating with Senator Thune and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to uphold integrity in the domestic beef market.”
