Country of Origin Labelling
The Food Standards Code requires that food labelling includes a country of origin. The Code also requires that fresh fruit and vegetables and food in Delis must also show the country of origin.
This is to give consumers an informed choice. A situation happening between the US and it’s neighbours is worth watching, as it may impact on our requirements.The US also has Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) on many foods including; beef, chicken, pork, lamb, goat, wild and farm-raised fish, perishable agricultural commodities, ginseng, macadamias, pecans and peanuts. This has created an ongoing dispute with Canada and Mexico.
One of the reasons for this dispute relates to meat from Canada. According to the current US COOL requirements, Canadian products must be handled and labelled separately by US meat processors.
This has resulted in many of these US firms excluding Canadian products from their businesses, which has produced a glut in Canada and caused prices to be depressed. Sales of Canadian livestock to the US were down 34% in the first six months of 2009, according to figures from the US Department of Agriculture.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) has agreed, after a second request, to establish a panel to rule on whether these COOL requirements violate international trade agreements. The panel is expected to issue the report by mid 2010.
Canada’s agricultural minister Gerry Ritz said: “This government puts farmers first and will continue to fight for fair and unfettered access for our Canadian producers and exporters. We are confident that we will win our challenge.”
The US government has released a statement expressing “disappointment” at the panel’s establishment, but added: “Nonetheless, we are confident that our measures provide information to consumers in a manner consistent with our WTO commitments.”
The report from the WTO panel does not require mandatory compliance, but if there is no action from it, the WTO can issue sanctions against countries that do not meet trade agreement requirements.