USDA’s MEAT ORIGIN RULEMAKING TO COVER FARM BILL REQUIREMENTS

USDAÆS MEAT ORIGIN RULEMAKING TO COVER FARM BILL REQUIREMENTS    The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service withdrew its previous meat origin rulemaking to cover origin provisions enacted in the 2002 Farm Bill.
   Under the Federal Meat Inspection Act, FSIS issues regulations to ensure that labeling statements about the origin of a product are “truthful, accurate and not misleading.”
   For several years, the agency has attempted to further clarify its origin rules for fresh meats produced in the United States.
   On May 13, 2002, President Bush signed the Farm Bill into law. The law amends the 1946 Agriculture Marketing Act to require retailers to inform consumers of the country-of-origin of agricultural commodities to final point of sale.
   One of the Farm Bill provisions is that beef, pork and lamb meat retailers may designate their products as having originated in the United States only if it is “exclusively born, raised, and slaughtered in the United States.”