CU hails COOL

Consumers Union is preppng consumers to watch for COOL: From CU:


Yonkers, NY--Consumers Union today hailed the long-awaited implementation of mandatory federal country of origin labeling (COOL) on all meats, fish, poultry and produce sold in retail stores in the United States beginning September 30, 2008. Mandatory COOL for meats, fish, produce and peanuts became law in the United States in 2002. But under pressure from industry, Congress delayed implementation of all but the seafood labeling until October 2008. A Consumer Reports poll released last year found that 92 percent of Americans agree that imported foods should be labeled by their country of origin.

"This is a long-awaited change and we think it will be a great benefit for consumers," said Jean Halloran, Director of Food Policy Initiatives for Consumers Union, nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports. "If a food safety problem is identified in a particular imported product, as happened with jalapeño and serrano peppers from Mexico earlier this year, then consumers will be able to avoid that product. On the other hand, some people like to buy certain imported products, like New Zealand lamb or Holland tomatoes. Still others just want to buy local produce. Either way, the new labels will give consumers important new information."

COOL is already in effect for seafood and for foods that are packaged or canned in other countries. Some in the industry have indicated that the new rules will impose high costs. "The country labels on seafood seem to have had little impact on price and packaged foods have included these labels for decades. We would be surprised if the new labels on meat and fresh produce caused noticeable changes in price in the supermarket," said Halloran. "Consumers have clearly indicated that they want to have the information to protect themselves at the grocery store, and COOL will help them do that."

Consumers Union is concerned, however, about exemptions from the new labeling requirements. Meat and poultry sold in butcher shops and fish sold in fish markets--some 11 percent of all meat and fish--are exempt because the law is worded to cover only large establishments that sell a certain minimum amount of fresh produce.

CU also objects to exemptions for processed foods. "This means that no ham or bacon or roasted peanuts will indicate their country of origin," says Halloran. Mixtures, such as mixed frozen vegetables or trail mix, are also exempt. "These exemptions are unnecessary and defeat the purpose of the law. Wherever there was any doubt, USDA seems to have come down on the side of industry and created the largest possible exemptions. We hope some of these problems can be addressed in the future," said Halloran.

CU developed an online guide for consumers to understand the new rules, available at: http://www.consumersunion.org/pdf/CU-Cool-Tool.pdf

CONSUMERS UNION’S “COOL TOOL”: DON’T BE FOOLED BY COUNTRY OF ORIGIN LABELING (COOL); THIS GUIDE WILL TELL YOU WHAT IS COOL & WHAT IS NOT

As of September 30, 2008, federal law requires fresh meat, poultry, fish, fruits and vegetables, peanuts and certain nuts to display a label that tells you the country of origin (COOL) of the product. This can come in handy if you have just learned that, say, peppers from Mexico are believed to be contaminated with salmonella. If the peppers in your supermarket are labeled as coming from California, or Chile, that should reduce your salmonella worries.

Under a decades-old law, foods packaged (canned, boxed or bagged) in another country have had to be labeled as to where they came from. The new law extends the requirement to fresh perishable meat, poultry, fish and produce, so that now almost all food should have COOL.

But there are exemptions and exceptions to this new law, and the old one, that may mean that you might still be fooled about from where a food product came. Here are some contrasts as to what will need to be labeled and what still won’t:

COOL (Must indicate country of origin.)
Meat sold in supermarkets.
Fish sold in supermarkets
Raw peanuts
Pork chops
Sliced cantaloupe
Raw almonds
Bagged lettuce
Frozen peas
Raw shrimp
Fresh salmon

NOT COOL (Exempt from country of origin labeling.)
Meat sold in butcher shops. Labeling is only required in stores that purchase a certain minimum amount ($230,000) of fresh or frozen produce a year. Butchers do not purchase any produce, so meat sold by them is exempt.
Fish sold in fish markets. Labeling is only required in stores that purchase a certain minimum amount ($230,000) of fresh or frozen produce a year. Fish markets do not purchase any produce, so fish sold there is exempt.
Roasted peanuts, peanut butter (processed food is exempt).
Ham and Bacon (processed food is exempt).
Fruit Salad (mixtures are exempt).
Trail Mix (mixtures are exempt).
Bagged Mixed Salad Greens (mixtures are exempt).
Frozen peas and carrots (mixtures are exempt).